Banihal/Jammu:
The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was open for one-way traffic on Wednesday despite fresh snowfall and overnight rains, officials said.
The minimum temperature dipped across Jammu region and hovered around the season’s average, the officials said.
A traffic department official in Jammu said passenger vehicles were allowed from Jammu towards Srinagar this morning as the highway remained open for one-way traffic despite moderate snowfall in Jawahar Tunnel area.
Minor incidents of shooting stones from hillocks overlooking the highway were reported at a few places between Panthiyal and Ramsu overnight but the road was cleared by agencies to facilitate movement of traffic, another traffic department official in Banihal said.
He said Srinagar-bound vehicles started crossing the Jawahar Tunnel around 11 am after the road was made motorable.
The highway had witnessed frequent traffic disruptions on Tuesday due to inclement weather, leaving many vehicles stranded which were cleared on priority, the officials said.
After overnight rains, it was a cloudy day in Jammu with the minimum temperature settling near the season’s average at 8.9 degrees Celsius against the previous night’s 10.8 degrees Celsius.
The city recorded 22.1 mm of rainfall overnight, an official of Meteorological department said.
He said Batote in Ramban district, which recorded 3.2 cm of fresh snowfall, was the coldest recorded place in Jammu region with a low of minus 2 degrees Celsius, while Bhaderwah in Doda district recorded minus 0.5 degrees Celsius after fresh 9.1 cm of snowfall.
Banihal town also recorded 6 cm of snowfall with night temperature settling at zero degrees Celsius, the spokesman said.
Katra, the base camp for pilgrims visiting Vaishno Devi Shrine in Reasi district, recorded 32.9 mm of rainfall overnight, he said, adding the minimum temperature in the town settled at 6.1 degrees Celsius against the previous night’s 8.9 degrees Celsius.
