SRINAGAR: In a tragic weather-related incident, nearly 90 sheep and goats belonging to a nomadic family from Rajouri district reportedly died after a lightning strike hit a high-altitude grazing area in Central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district.
The incident took place during the intervening night in the Dhana Dok area of Poshkar Kangan, a remote alpine pasture frequently used by migratory tribal families during the summer season.
According to officials and locals, the livestock belonged to nomads Mohammad Yaseen Bijran and Abdul Majeed Bijran, residents of Sunderbani area in Rajouri district.
Locals said the area experienced intense thunderstorms and heavy weather activity overnight, following which dozens of dead animals were discovered in the pasture on Monday morning.
Preliminary reports suggest the flock was struck by lightning during the storm, resulting in massive livestock losses.
The incident has caused severe financial damage to the affected nomadic family, whose livelihood mainly depends on sheep and goat rearing during seasonal migration to upper reaches of Kashmir.
Police and local authorities reached the spot and began assessing the exact scale of the loss.
Such incidents are frequently reported from the higher reaches of Jammu and Kashmir during the annual migration season, when nomadic families move towards alpine meadows that remain vulnerable to sudden weather changes, cloudbursts and lightning strikes.
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