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SRINAGAR: Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Anshul Garg, today chaired a high-level meeting to review winter preparedness across Kashmir Division, emphasising coordinated efforts, timely response and adequate arrangements to ensure uninterrupted essential services during the winter season.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Commissioners, Commissioner Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC), Director Airport Authority Srinagar, SSP Traffic Rural and senior officers from KPDCL, R&B, MED, PMGSY, ULB, BRO, NHAI, Irrigation and Flood Control, PHE, IMD, FCS&CA, Health, SDA, Police and other concerned departments.
During the meeting, the Divisional Commissioner reviewed the snow clearance action plans of various agencies, including MED, R&B, PMGSY, ULB, SMC and BRO. He directed all agencies to ensure prompt snow clearance and clearly demarcate jurisdictional responsibilities to avoid duplication and confusion.
He stressed optimal utilisation of available machinery and manpower and directed the concerned agencies to complete all pending stage contracts to strengthen the snow clearance mechanism.
Concerned Chief Engineers and officers assured the chair that adequate arrangements are in place to ensure smooth, prompt and timely snow clearance on highways, major roads, streets and inner lanes immediately after snowfall.
Reviewing winter power preparedness, the Divisional Commissioner assessed electricity demand and supply, availability of buffer stocks of transformers, transformer oil, DG sets and HSD in Gurez, besides the status of branch cutting. The meeting was informed that all districts have adequate transformer stocks while 80 percent of branch cutting has been completed.
It was further informed that the average electricity demand in the Valley during winter is around 1,700 MW against an average supply of 1,300 MW, while peak demand during touchs to 2,400 MW.
The Divisional Commissioner directed the Chief Engineer, KPDCL, to augment the capacity of workshops wherever required, complete the remaining branch-cutting work at the earliest, strictly adhere to scheduled power curtailment timings and ensure prompt repair of damaged transformers.
While reviewing the availability of essential commodities in remote and snowbound areas, including Gurez and Karnah-Machil-Keran belt, the Divisional Commissioner directed FCS&CA to complete the advance stocking of LPG, petroleum products, rice and wheat within one week.
He stressed that adequate stocks of essential commodities be ensured in all far-flung areas to prevent any shortage or inconvenience to the public during road closures. Taking serious note of delays in the commencement of winter air sorties in Bandipora and Kupwara, the Divisional Commissioner directed the Civil Aviation Department to operationalise the facility by December 1 to facilitate emergency transportation from remote and inaccessible areas.
Regarding daily flight operations at Srinagar Airport, he directed the Director, Airport Authority Srinagar, to ensure timely dissemination of information to passengers and the general public about changes in flight schedules due to adverse weather conditions.
The Div Com also reviewed healthcare preparedness across districts, including heating arrangements in hospitals, availability of essential medicines, deployment of medical staff in far-flung areas and the requirement for 4x4 ambulances.
He directed NHM to provide 4x4 ambulances to the Directorate of Health Services Kashmir for their further distribution among districts, in addition to the SANJY ambulances.
Emphasising proactive healthcare arrangements, he directed the Health Department to undertake comprehensive line-listing of expectant mothers and critically ill patients in vulnerable and remote areas. He further stressed their advance shifting to temporary shelters, wherever required, to ensure uninterrupted access to medical care during heavy snowfall and road closures.
Reviewing the preparedness of the Jal Shakti Department, the Divisional Commissioner directed officials to ensure the uninterrupted functioning of all PHE schemes, including lift water supply schemes, and make adequate arrangements for the deployment of water tankers wherever required to ensure drinking water availability.
He also directed the forest department to ensure adequate stocking of firewood at depots across the Valley.
To strengthen interdepartmental coordination, the Divisional Commissioner directed all district administrations and departments to ensure round-the-clock functioning of their respective control rooms, including the Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC). He also instructed the appointment of nodal officers and sharing of their contact details to facilitate timely assistance, coordination and dissemination of information.
Stressing the importance of timely weather-related advisories, Garg directed the concerned departments to ensure prompt sharing of information regarding weather and avalanche forecasts with the general public to minimise risks and safeguard lives.
Meanwhile, he directed the Commissioner, SMC, to identify waterlogging hotspots across Srinagar city and ensure the deployment of adequate dewatering pumps to address any eventuality during the winter season.
The Divisional Commissioner also emphasised the need for accountability and timely grievance redressal, directing all officers to properly document the time of occurrence of any issue and the response time taken by the concerned department to resolve it.
During the meeting, Deputy Commissioners briefed the chair about the winter preparedness measures undertaken in their respective districts and highlighted critical issues requiring intervention and resolution.
The Divisional Commissioner called upon all departments to maintain close coordination and ensure that all necessary arrangements are put in place well in advance to minimise public inconvenience and ensure the safety and well-being of people across Kashmir Division during the winter season.
