Snowfall in Kashmir is never just weather. It is now an emotion, memory, poetry, and identity wrapped in white.For the last few years, each winter people wait eagerly for the first flakes to fall. Social media is filled with pictures of snow-covered rooftops, white meadows, and children playing with snow. For many, snowfall in the valley represents joy, nostalgia, and the romance of the valley in winter.

There is also a growing trend of local people and tourists travelling to famous winter destinations like Gulmarg and Pahalgam to enjoy the snow. Skiing, snow walks, and cozy hotel stays have become part of winter culture for those who can afford it. Snowfall as such looks like a celebration. It supports winter tourism and adds to the region’s charm. Some even link snowfall to larger conversations. People talk about climate patterns, water resources, and crop production. Snow is seen as a blessing for agriculture and an important source of water for the coming seasons. In discussions around climate change, snowfall often becomes a symbol of ecological balance.

Harsher Truth Behind Snowfall

Beyond the beauty and the excitement lies another reality, a harsher, quieter truth that does not always make it to photographs or social media discourse.  Heavy snowfall, like the kind we have witnessed this year, brings life to a near standstill. Roads are shut. Highways get blocked. Entire villages in the rural areas remain cut off for days. What looks magical from a window can become a serious challenge on the ground. Movement becomes extremely difficult. Children in rural areas struggle to reach coaching centres and schools. In many places,coaching institutes remain closed because it is simply unsafe or impossible to travel. Daily routines collapse under the weight of snow.

The situation becomes even more serious for patients and the elderly. Medical emergencies do not wait for the weather to improve. A simple illness can turn dangerous when roads are blocked and transport is unavailable. Ambulances often cannot reach remote areas in time. Families are forced to carry patients through snow on makeshift stretchers or wait helplessly for help.Infrastructure also comes under pressure. Electricity lines break.Water supply gets disrupted. In many areas, snow clearance is slow because resources and machinery are limited. While the administration tries its best, the scale of heavy snowfall often exceeds the available coping capacity.This gap is felt most strongly in far flung and rural regions.

Small and poorly built houses face serious risks. Roofs can collapse under the weight of accumulated snow. Families already living in fragile conditions are pushed into greater insecurity during winter storms. The biggest victims of heavy snowfall are often invisible in public conversations.They are the daily wage workers. laborers, construction workers, street vendors, load carriers, and small service providers who depend on daily earnings to feed their families.When snow blocks roads and markets shut down, their income stops immediately. There is no work from home for a daily-wager. No paid leave. No savings cushion for many. Each snowbound day means an empty kitchen, anxious parents, and children who may go to bed hungry. Winter for them is not scenic; it is a season of survival.

Kashmiriyat And Test Of Society 

This is where society is tested. Snowfall may be a natural event, but how we respond to its human consequences is a moral choice.Those who are well off, who enjoy the beauty of winter from warm homes or holiday resorts, must look beyond their own comfort. Neighbours also matter; local communities matter. A little support in the form of food, firewood, medicines, or financial help can make a huge difference for a struggling family.

True Kashmiriyat is not only about culture and tradition. It is about compassion, solidarity, and standing by each other in times of hardship. Winter is the season when these values should shine the brightest. We must also remember the voiceless lives around us. Animals and birds suffer silently during heavy snowfall. Food becomes scarce; water sources freeze. Leaving out grains for birds or scraps for stray animals is a small act of kindness that reflects a large heart.

Snowfall in Kashmir will always be beautiful. It will always inspire poetry and attract visitors. But it also demands responsibility, empathy, and collective care. If we can balance celebration with compassion, then winter will not only cover the valley in white, it will also reveal the warmth of its people.

(The author is an educationist and columnist based in north Kashmir who writes on educational, social and youth related issues. Views expressed are personal. He can be reached at rayeesmasroor111@gmail.com)