Services restoration efforts in full swing as snowfall continues in Srinagar

Senior officers from line departments designated as nodal officers for restoration operations; control rooms with public helplines set up in all departments

SRINAGAR, NOVEMBER 07: Efforts are in full swing beginning soon after it started to snow early Thursday morning to restore affected services in Srinagar where the administration including all line departments is on its toes making continuous efforts to deal with the situation and bring about earliest possible restoration.
Concerned line departments have all established control rooms with helplines for the convenience of general public requiring assistance in view of the prevalent weather situation in the district — with all of them under strict instructions to ensure round-the-clock deployment of adequate men and machinery on the ground and work in close coordination amongst themselves.
The general public have been asked to contact the following numbers in case of eventualities: DC Office Srinagar 0194-2477033/2452182/9419028242/9419028251, R&B 0194-2313751/9419014333, Fire & Emergency Services 0194-2479488/101/9419251908, MED 0194-2497458/7889624147, PDD 0194-2452001/9419055102, UEED 0194-2500444, SMC 0194-2474499/18001807038/, PMGSY 9419057213, PHE 0194-2452047/9469545842 Health 0194-2452498, Drainage 9419004325, Sanitation 9419093213, FCSCA 0194-2455019, Police Control Room 0194-2452092/100 and Traffic Control Room 0194-2450022.
In addition to this senior officers from concerned departments have been designated as nodal officers for restoration operations and to monitor the situation within their areas of jurisdiction.
The nodal officers can be contacted Wali Mohammad Mir (PDD) at 9419055102, Nayeem Khan (R&B) at 9419014333, Bashir A Shah (F&ES) at 9419251908, A Rasheed Bhat (MED) at 7889624147, Imtiyaz Ahmad (Drainage) at 9419004325, Nisar Ahmad (Sanitation) at 9419093213, Mushtaq A Wani (PMGSY) at 9419057213 and Nazir A Dar (PHE) at 9469545842.
The said officers are operating under the supervision of Additional Deputy Commissioners M Hanief Balkhi (9419009472) and Khurshid A Shah (941943387).
Deputy Commissioner Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary said that response mechanism to deal with the situation has been fully activated and that all line departments including MED, PWD, PHE, SMC, PDD, UEED, Traffic and Health are on the ground in efforts to restore the affected services.
He said concerned departments are under strict instructions to ensure swift snow-clearance and dewatering of all roads and lanes especially those leading to important installations like hospitals and receiving stations and that the Traffic department has been directed to ensure maximum police deployment for effective handling of traffic situation and movement in the City.
Giving details of efforts to restore services in the district it was informed that the Mechanical Engineering Department has put into service all 24 snowplows and snowcats in efforts to clear the roads of snow adding that R&B and SMC is also involved in snow-clearance operation with the latter pressing 18 JCBs besides other machineries to clear main roads and pedestrian lanes across the Srinagar city. Some 4000 personnel are on the ground involved in efforts aimed at earliest possible restoration.
It was also informed that all of 80 dewatering stations of SMC and 12 of UEED and 21 mobile pumping stations of SMC are operational on DG-sets round-the-clock to prevent water-logging. It was informed that the F&ES department has also kept some of its pool of fire tenders and portable fire pumps available for water-logging exigencies.
In regard to power restoration efforts it was informed that half of the 33KV lines feeding 36 receiving stations in Srinagar were restored and charged by 1 o'clock in the afternoon but continuous snowfall has forced disconnection in order to avoid mishaps with snowfall causing trees to fall off as has happened at several places through the day in the city. One of the personnels involved in power restoration efforts in fact died in Hazratbal area where a huge branch of a tree fell on him killing him on the spot.