Kashmir Impulse Desk

Srinagar, July 24

Flood fears eased across Kashmir on Friday as the Jhelum river and its tributaries began receding after overnight rain, with authorities saying water levels at major monitoring stations had fallen below flood declaration thresholds.

The decline brought temporary relief to a region that has endured several days of heavy monsoon rainfall, flooding and landslides that have killed about 28 people in the Jammu region and damaged homes, roads, farmland and public infrastructure across Jammu and Kashmir.

Water levels in the Jhelum basin had risen sharply late on Thursday, touching or approaching flood declaration or warning levels at several locations. Fresh rain in the upper catchments and southern parts of Kashmir briefly slowed the decline on Friday, but the rivers began receding again after rainfall eased in the afternoon.

“The water level at all flood monitoring stations on the Jhelum, its tributaries, Wular Lake and Sind Nallah is now below the flood declaration level after touching or nearing it last night,” a Flood Control Department official said.

At 11 am, the Jhelum was flowing at 18.87 feet at Sangam, below its 21-foot warning level and 25-foot danger mark. At Pampore, the river had briefly reached the 5-foot danger mark overnight before beginning to fall. The flood declaration level there is 4.5 feet.

At Ram Munshi Bagh, the river stood at 19.04 feet, above the 18-foot flood declaration level but below the 21-foot danger mark. Further downstream, the level at Asham was 12.42 feet, against a flood declaration level of 14 feet and a danger mark of 16.5 feet.

Wular Lake, which acts as a major natural reservoir for the Jhelum basin, stood at 1,575.93 metres, below its flood declaration level of 1,578 metres.

Rainfall until about 2 pm caused a marginal rise in water levels across parts of the basin. By late evening, however, the downward trend had resumed.

At 9 pm, the Jhelum was flowing at 19.77 feet at Sangam, 5.09 metres at Pampore, 18.89 feet at Ram Munshi Bagh and 12.74 feet at Asham. Wular Lake stood at 1,576.10 metres. All remained below their respective danger marks.

Similar fluctuations were recorded in the Vaishaw at Khudwani, Rambiara at Wachi, Lidder at Batkoot, Doodhganga at Barzulla and Sind at Doderhama. The water levels rose slightly after fresh rain but subsequently receded, remaining below flood declaration and danger levels.

“Moderate to heavy rainfall in the southern catchment of the Jhelum basin caused a marginal rise in tributaries, slowing the recession at Sangam and Ram Munshi Bagh for a few hours. However, water levels started falling again by late evening and are expected to decline further by morning,” the Flood Control Department official said.

Authorities said they were monitoring the situation around the clock and urged residents to rely on official information rather than rumours circulating on social media.

“People are advised to rely only on official updates, remain vigilant and cooperate with the administration,” the department said.

The weather improved across Jammu and Kashmir on Friday afternoon. The Meteorological Department forecast mostly dry conditions from July 25 to 27, although isolated rain or thunderstorms could occur, mainly in Jammu. Another wet spell is expected from July 28 to 31, with isolated heavy showers possible in parts of the Jammu region.

The latest rainfall came after five days of severe weather that caused widespread disruption across J&K.

Rajouri and Poonch were among the worst-hit districts, where floods, cloudbursts and landslides have claimed about 28 lives. Weather-related incidents also damaged homes, roads, crops and public infrastructure in Reasi, Samba, Udhampur and the Chenab Valley districts of Ramban, Doda and Kishtwar.

In Kashmir, floodwaters swept away a shopping complex in Beerwah after the Sukhnag Nallah overflowed on Tuesday. Flash floods and landslides also damaged homes, roads, agricultural land and apple orchards in several parts of the Valley.

For now, the easing of river levels has reduced the immediate flood threat, but authorities remain on alert as another spell of rainfall is forecast for the coming week.