Public transport increases in Srinagar: Officials

The movement of public transport in Srinagar improved significantly on Monday as life was inching towards normalcy in the valley after a prolonged shutdown against the Centre's decision to scrap Jammu and Kashmir's special status, officials said.

Most modes of public transport have been restored across Kashmir as mini-buses have started plying on more routes. Intra-district and inter-district connectivity have improved significantly, according to officials.

Auto-rickshaws and inter-district cabs have been plying for a while now, but the movement of intra-district cabs across the valley has also increased in the last few days, the officials said.

Police also cracked a whip on the roadside vendors, who used to put up their stalls on the TRC Chowk-Lal Chowk road every day.

The officials said the vendors were not allowed to erect their stalls on Monday to allow the smooth flow of the traffic as the city, especially the areas around the commercial hub of Lal Chowk, had been witnessing frequent massive traffic jams.

On Sunday, the rail service in the valley also resumed fully as the train chugged from Srinagar to Banihal.

The service was suspended due to security reasons on August 3, two days before the Centre announced its decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370, which gave special status to the state, and bifurcate it into Union territories.

The decision led to an unannounced shutdown in the valley and authorities imposed severe restrictions that were later gradually eased out.