Srinagar, Sep 1 (IANS) Heavy rainfall on Tuesday caused water-logging in J&K’s Pahalgam hill station as water entered some hotels, shops, and the taxi stand in the town.
Officials said heavy rainfall lashed Pahalgam town in Anantnag district today, leading to water-logging at several locations and resulting in a rise in the water level of the Lidder River.
Several roads and low-lying areas in the hill station were affected by the intense spell of rain, with water accumulating at various locations and disrupting normal movement.
The Lidder River remained swollen amid increased water flow following the rainfall, while authorities continued to keep a watch on the situation.
The rainfall was part of a wider spell of unsettled weather across Jammu and Kashmir. The Meteorological Centre Srinagar had forecast light to moderate rain and thundershowers at several places and warned that intense showers could trigger flash floods, mudslides, and landslides in vulnerable areas.
Residents and visitors in Pahalgam were advised to remain cautious, particularly near water channels and other vulnerable locations, as further rainfall activity remained possible.
The Kashmir Valley and the Jammu division have been witnessing an alarming and unusual increase in cloudbursts triggering flashfloods and a rise in local rivers and streams.
While environmental scientists are attributing it to the phenomenon of global climate change, they also widely blame the ruthless deforestation and absence of tree cover in the mountains.
Ecologists believe that a dense tree cover in the mountains would stop the forceful runoff into the low-lying areas, and because the mountains are bereft of any tree cover, a cloudburst or heavy rainfall in the higher reaches washes down stones, mud and debris with it into the low-lying areas, thereby resulting in devastation.
“We are paying the price for so-called development and urbanisation which has been mindless and unbelievably self-destructive,” environment scientist Mansha Nisar said.
–IANS
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