Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday documented his unexpected road journey from Srinagar to Jammu after poor visibility caused his flight to be canceled. Abdullah shared the details of his journey to the civil secretariat in Jammu on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), marking his first visit to the government office there since taking office on October 16.
Poor visibility in Jammu meant a sudden, last minute, road trip. Nothing flew in to or out from Jammu yesterday so I had to saddle up & take the road to the winter capital. pic.twitter.com/gyHVymasDY
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) November 11, 2024
On Sunday, adverse weather at Jammu airport resulted in the cancellation of eleven flights due to low visibility, and one additional flight was canceled due to technical issues. Abdullah posted about his road trip, stating, “Poor visibility in Jammu meant a sudden, last minute, road trip. Nothing flew in to or out from Jammu yesterday so I had to saddle up and take the road to the winter capital.” He also shared three videos capturing the journey of his cavalcade from Srinagar to Jammu.
Visibility remained poor in Jammu on Monday, with Abdullah noting that conditions from his residence balcony suggested further disruptions to flight operations. “Looking at the visibility… I don’t think flights will be operating any time soon today either,” he added.
Upon arriving at the civil secretariat in Jammu at 10 am, Abdullah was greeted warmly by government employees. Earlier directives had been issued for all administrative secretaries and department heads to relocate to Jammu, with work in the city beginning on November 11 for the winter season. This marks a modified approach from the previous ‘Darbar Move’ tradition.
Jammu and Kashmir officially ended the 149-year-old Darbar Move practice on June 30. This biannual tradition involved the relocation of approximately 8,000-9,000 civil secretariat employees and official documents between the twin capitals, Srinagar and Jammu, every six months. Although the chief minister and his cabinet will be stationed in Jammu during the winter, they are expected to travel across the Union Territory as required. The decision to end the Darbar Move reflects efforts to streamline administrative functions within the UT’s governance structure.
