J&K: 2 Labourers Working on Tunnel Link Killed as Avalanche Strikes Sonamarg

Srinagar: Two labourers were killed after an avalanche struck Sonamarg, a popular tourist destination, in Jammu and Kashmir’s central district of Ganderbal here on Thursday.

The victims were identified as Sandeep Kumar and Bala Krishna, both residents of Chenab Valley’s Kishtwar district of Jammu division. Sandeep’s body was recovered earlier and later after hours of rescue operation to trace him, Bala Krishna’s body was also recovered.

According to the Jammu and Kashmir police, the snow avalanche was triggered from the upper reaches of the Ranga Morh, accumulated at Sarbal area of Sonamarg.

The deaths were confirmed to NewsClick by Burhan Andrabi, senior project engineer Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Limited (MEIL). The Hyderabad-based company is responsible for the construction of strategic tunnel link between the Union territories of Ladakh and Kashmir.

The Jammu and Kashmir police in Ganderbal district said that the rescue and search operation was stopped after recovery of both the bodies amidst continuous snowfall at Ranga Morh in Sarbal, making the area vulnerable for snow slides. The police added that the site was still “vulnerable” as small snow slides were still coming from the top of the hill.

“Megha company management has been asked to shift the workers to safe location till the weather gets cleared,” the police statement read.

Andrabi told NewsClick that the avalanche occurred near outside an MEIL tunnel site following which a rescue operation was launched to locate the labourers working on the project. Teams of police, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Indian Army, Beacon and MEIL teams rushed to the spot to clear snow from the sites.

“It is a tragedy and we are dealing with it,” he said.

The avalanche was caught live on cameras following which it was shared widely on social media networks like Twitter triggering shock across the region. The distant village of Sarbal is about 15 km from the Sonamarg market that remains cut-off from the valley in winter months.

Currently, the construction work is going on to build five tunnels, including the main Zojila tunnel, that are expected to be ready for the use of defence purposes by 2025.

The locals of Sarbal, which is one of the last inhabited localities along the Srinagar-Leh highway, often struggle with their lives due to heavy snowfall.

The avalanche also comes as a big dampener for construction work going on in the area. The work in Sonamarg would often be shut in the winter, especially in the harshest 40-day winter period locally referred as Chill e Kalan – from December 21 to January 31. Since last year, however, the MEIL has been working throughout the year, including in the winter season, to construct multiple tunnels on the treacherous Zojilla pass for all weather connectivity between Kashmir Valley and Ladakh.

The fresh snowfall comes in the wake of latest western disturbance that affected Jammu and Kashmir since Wednesday morning causing moderate rain and snowfall in most places across the region. The precipitation comes after weeks of low temperature falling below 0 degrees. Even Srinagar has recorded coldest days since last week with temperature falling up to minus 6.4°C.