news details |
|
|
| Srinagar-Jammu highway closed, hundreds of vehicles stranded | | |  Early Times Report
Srinagar, Jan 7: Hundreds of vehicles, including those carrying passengers, are stranded on Tuesday on the national highway due to closure of only all weather Srinagar-Jammu road, connecting Kashmir valley with the rest of the country due to fresh landslides and snowfall.
There was also fresh snowfall on the 434-km-long Srinagar-Leh national highway, the only road connecting Union Territory (UT) Ladakh with Kashmir valley, which remained closed for the past 28 days on Tuesday due to accumulation of over five feet snow and slippery condition.
The historic 86-km-long Mughal road, connecting Shopian in south Kashmir with Rajouri and Poonch in Jammu region and Anantnag-Kishtwar road also remained closed for the past 28 days. Both the roads will now remain closed for winter months.
Traffic on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway was suspended again on Monday evening following fresh landslides at Digdol, a traffic police official said. He said there was also fresh snowfall on both sides of Jawahar tunnel, Banihal, Shaitan Nallah and other places on the highway.
He said the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has already pressed into service sophisticated machines to clear the landslides and snow. However, continued shooting stones was hampering the clearance operation, he said.
Once highway is put through, he said only stranded vehicles will be allowed to move towards their respective destinations.
Hundreds of vehicles, including those carrying passengers and essential commodities, particularly vegetables, which left Jammu on Monday are stranded on the highway. However, about 800 trucks with essentials had reached Kashmir before the highway was closed.
Passengers and truckers alleged that despite one-way, authorities are allowing vehicles from both sides on the highway which often led to road jam for hours together.
''We are being stopped at places where there is no drinking water, shelter sheds and other facilities, the truckers alleged. We demand that only one-way traffic be allowed strictly on the highway which will help smooth flow of vehicles,'' they said.
They further said that passengers are now taking risk and crossing the avalanche prone area , particularly Digdol, on foot despite shooting stones. Several passengers were injured in shooting stones during the past one month, he said.
Now passengers from both sides are taking another vehicle after crossing the avalanche prone area on foot, they said.
Locals residents and passengers alleged that the highway remained closed frequently due to landslides and shooting stones. Frequent closure of the highway always led to price rise of essentials in the valley, which entirely depend upon imports from other states. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
