The 28 January 2026 current-affairs update concerns massive avalanches at the Sonamarg tourist resort in Jammu and Kashmir after heavy snowfall. Buildings and vehicles were engulfed, the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was disrupted, all flights were cancelled, and rescue operations were launched immediately by the NDRF and the Army. For exam preparation, the issue is relevant not only as a natural-disaster event but also as a case study in Himalayan disaster management, transport connectivity, tourism safety and strategic logistics.
Sonamarg is a popular hill station in Ganderbal district of Kashmir. It is important because of its links with the Zoji La approach, the Srinagar-Leh route, the Amarnath Yatra base and Thajiwas Glacier. Heavy winter snowfall makes road connectivity difficult in this belt. In that context, the Z-Morh or Sonamarg Tunnel is relevant: it is a 6.4 km twin-tube tunnel connecting Gagangir with Sonamarg. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi on 13 January 2025 and is meant to improve all-weather road access to Sonamarg.
For prelims, likely areas include the location of Sonamarg, NH-44, and the role of rescue agencies such as NDRF and the Army. For mains, the event can be used in answers on disaster risk reduction, mountain infrastructure, tourism-linked economy and connectivity in sensitive border-region approaches. The broader lesson is that Himalayan development must combine roads and tunnels with weather-risk planning, warning systems and rapid-response capacity.