Monsoon’s second spell: Rains, land-sliding suspends life in Azad Kashmir

Due to continuous rainfall, most roads inundated, inconveniencing commuters.

MUZAFFARABAD:

Roads connecting Muzzaffarabad with Neelum Valley and Mansehra remained closed for all kind of traffic on Monday due to heavy downpour since Monday night and subsequent land-sliding in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), the police said. 

Land-sliding, rolling stones and mud also blocked the Rawalpindi Road near Kohala. The Azad Jammu and Kashmir administration had cleared the road for small vehicles but loaded trucks were not allowed till the complete removal of mud.



Abbotabad Road that connects Muzaffarabad with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also remained closed at Lohar Gali, some 7km away from the AJK’s capital

Areas including Hatain Bala, Chinari, Kotli, Bagh, Rawalakot and Neelum Valley have been receiving heavy rains since Monday night. 25 millimetre rain has so far been recorded in the limits of Muzzaffarabad.

The rain has brought down the mercury by 12 notches. “The second spell of rainfall which started on Monday night will continue in upper AJK and plains till Thursday,” a meteorological official told The Express Tribune here.

“The downpour led to increase in the water levels in Jhelum, Neelum rivers,  ponds and streams but there was no  immediate threat of floods in any part of Azad Kashmir,” said State Disaster Management Authority spokesperson Raja Muazzam.



Due to the continuous rainfall, most of the roads in Muzzaffarabad have water-logged causing immense inconvenience to the commuters. The over-flowing drains and dilapidated roads have also compounded the problem.

The main areas including Babu Mohalla, Gharipan Chowk, Bella Noor Shah and the lower areas of Chella Bandi were inundated with water and sand. Similar reports were received from Bagh, Rawalakot and Kotli areas. The rain has also damaged the maize crop in upper reaches of Neelum and Leepa valleys.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 20^th, 2013.