Srinagar: Traffic on Srinagar-Jammu highway, the only all-weather road connecting Kashmir valley with the rest of the country, resumed on Sunday after remaining suspended for two days.
The Srinagar-Leh highway, the only road connecting Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh with Kashmir, historic Mughal road, and Anantnag-Kishtwar road remained closed due to the accumulation of snow and avalanches.
“One-way traffic was on Sunday resumed on Srinagar-Jammu national highway after remaining closed for two days,” a traffic police officers said.
He said Srinagar-Jammu highway was closed on Friday for weekly maintenance and repair work, adding traffic could not be restored on the road on Saturday due to a landslide at Samroli in Udhampur.
He said that the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) pressed into service sophisticated machines and put through the traffic on Kashmir highway with some restrictions. “Only fresh Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs) shall be allowed from Srinagar to Jammu on the highway,” he said.
He said LMVs have to cross Zig (Qazigund) between 0700 hrs and 1000 hrs. “No vehicle shall be allowed before and after cut-off timing,” he said.
The official said only stranded Heavy Motor Vehicles (HMVs) between Jawahar Tunnel and Banihal shall be allowed towards Jammu. “No HMVs, including fresh perishable carriers, will be allowed in the opposite direction,” he added.
The Mughal road, connecting Shopian in south Kashmir with Rajouri and Poonch in the Jammu region, also remained shut due to snow since December last year. The road, seen as an alternative to Srinagar-Jammu highway, is likely to reopen later this month.
Meanwhile, traffic remained suspended on 434-km-long Srinagar-Leh national highway, the only road linking Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh with Kashmir valley, since January 1, 2021, due to the accumulation of snow and avalanches. The Beacon had cleared snow on the highway in the last week of February.
But, fresh snowfall and avalanches forced authorities to close the highway again. A Beacon driver was killed on Wednesday in a snow avalanche near Zojilla during a snow clearance operation on Leh highway. Snow clearance operation continued to put through the highway.
Snow clearance operation on Anantnag-Kishtwar road was also going on war footing to resume traffic, suspended since December last year.