Five missing after taxi plunges into swollen stream in Kashmir

Srinagar: Five persons went missing on Thursday after their taxi plunged into a swollen mountain stream in Kashmir's Anantnag district.

Police said the accident occurred when the car driver lost control of the vehicle while driving from Larnoo village to Kokernag town and it plunged into the Brengi stream.

Six passengers were rescued. A search and rescue operation has been launched to trace the missing persons.

All water bodies in the Valley have swollen alarmingly due to incessant rain and fresh snow in the plains during the last 36 hours.

Water in the Jhelum river crossed the flood alert mark at Sangam in Anantnag district and at Ram Munshibagh in Srinagar city on Thursday.

Many low-lying areas along the river banks were inundated, with authorities organising rescue operations to help the marooned people.

The Met office forecast a let up in rain and snow from Thursday afternoon and improvement in overall weather conditions from Friday onwards.

However, the water level in rivers, streams and lakes in Kashmir is expected to rise further in the next 24 hours due to melting of snow and swelling of tributaries of major rivers in the Valley.

Many small bridges and culverts connecting hilly areas with the mainland have been washed away by the swollen streams.