Although weather remained clear through out the day, reports of deaths due to avalanches and snow storms continued to pour in from remotest areas of Doda and adjoining mountainous belt. Five more persons have lost their lives due to severe cold and snowstorms during the last 24 hours in different areas of Doda and Reasi districts. Authorities have decided to drop ration and other essential commodities as many parts of Doda, Kishtwar and Bhaderwah still inaccessible as huge snow, ranges from 6 to 10 feet, has accumulated in these hilly areas.

Could the j&k government have averted snow tragedy?

GEOENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS IN HIMALAYA . Bindhy Wasini Pandey . Published by Mittal Publications . New Delhi . 2002 . 430 pages This book is a research-based

People buried in avalanches will have a better chance of survival thanks to a simple breathing device

An avalanche killed five people in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan, the emergencies ministry said on Friday. The avalanche hit the men when they were collecting brushwood in Kyrgyzstan's eastern Issyk-Kul region near its border with China, the ministry said in a statement. Avalanches and mudslides are frequent occurences in the mountainous nation of five million, especially in spring when meltwater rushes down from its peaks. (Reporting by Olga Dzyubenko; Writing by Olzhas Auyezov) REUTERS NEWS SERVICE

In the wake of widespread damage due to the recent snowfall, the state government today released Rs 2 crore under the Natural Calamity Relief Fund (NCRF) scheme. Chief secretary B.R. Kundal after taking a comprehensive review of the damage caused to the property and infrastructure due to unprecedented snowfall in Jammu released the money. At least eight districts in Jammu region have been badly affected by the recent calamity. In Doda and Kishtwar, a couple of high transmission towers, too, had been damaged. Kundal released the money after taking into consideration reports furnished by different deputy commissioners. Out of this fund, Rs 1.50 crore will be placed at the disposal of the PDD for installing new electricity poles in far-flung areas of affected districts.

More than 40 Peruvians are feared dead after an avalanche of mud and rocks, possibly triggered by seismic activity, buried