Srinagar, March 30 -- Overnight rains lashed plains of J&K and light snowfall was recorded over higher reaches that led to the closure of the Srinagar-Leh national highway and the Bandipora-Gurez road in north Kashmir on Sunday.

The J&K meteorological centre in Srinagar said the rain and snow were triggered by a western disturbance that hit the region on Saturday evening. "Gulmarg received the highest (13 mm) rain since yesterday night. Srinagar saw 9.1 mm rain," said an official of MeT. Independent weather spotter Faizan Arif said a good spell was expected to bring down the rain deficit (50% in March) in the region.

Traffic officials stated in a statement that the traffic movement from Minamarg towards Srinagar could not be allowed due...