The winter in Valley tests the efficiency of any government in Kashmir. More so, the intermittent snowfalls which throw life out of gear. A government proves its mettle if it weathers a heavy snowfall with a minimum disturbance to the routine. By this yardstick the current administration has come a cropper. Snowfall on Saturday caught it completely off-guard. It appeared to be at a loss about how to deal with the situation. Electric supply suffered an unprecedented Valley-wide breakdown. Transmission tower failures reduced the power supply to just 80 MWs in the Valley. It took more than 24 hours to restore some of the supply. On Monday itself there was still a large swathe of area in rural Kashmir which had no electricity.
Similarly, snow clearance on the roads also took time which affected traffic within Kashmir Valley. Few in the Valley expected such an abysmal handling of the bad turn in the weather during the Governor’s rule. This so when the meteorological department had predicted snowfall and rain in the Valley.
True, in past too, the administrations response to snowstorms has largely been tardy. Even a moderate snowfall has sometimes been too heavy to handle, ending up throwing not only life but the administration too out of gear. Being a state with long, extended winters, the administration in Kashmir is expected to have a pool of knowledge, experience and the expertise to deal with the situation. In the event of a snowfall, power and water supply are the first to be disrupted and snow clearance operations are lax.
But sometimes the state administration has pleasantly surprised people by proactively acting to reduce the inconvenience caused to people in the event of a heavy snowfall. And Governor-led administrations enjoy a better reputation in dealing with the crises caused by the weather. This is why the pathetic response to Saturday’s snowfall has come as a huge disappointment to the people. One hopes that the situation improves going ahead.The real challenge lies ahead.The severity of the winter will only increase by the time December comes along. And the people will expect the government to be prepared for the next snowfall.
One also expects that unlike many times in the past and also during the latest snowfall, Power Development Department will be better prepared to deal with the situation. The utility has usually been the target of the public vitriol, both on street and online for its inability to immediately restore electricity after Valley is snowed in. There is a widespread belief that the PDD does not plan ahead for a snowstorm. Here is hoping that the power supply situation turns out better next time it snows.
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