Srinagar : The Jammu-Srinagar national highway was reopened for light motor vehicles (LMVs) on Wednesday, following a two-day closure due to multiple landslides triggered by heavy rains in Ramban district, officials reported. Heavy motor vehicles are still prohibited from plying on the highway as road clearance and widening operations continue, according to a traffic department official.
LMVs were allowed to travel on the highway from both sides around 9:30 am after debris was cleared at Mehar, Dalwas, and Magerkote. The reopening of the 270-km highway, the sole all-weather road connecting Kashmir with the rest of the country, brought relief to numerous individuals, including tourists, who had been stranded in the twin capital cities due to its closure.
Multiple landslides, mudslides, and shooting stones from the hillocks had blocked the highway at nearly a dozen places between Nashri and Banihal tunnels during the intervening night of Sunday and Monday, leading to the suspension of traffic.
Meanwhile, the Mughal road—an alternate route linking Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu region with south Kashmir’s Shopian district—remained closed for the fifth consecutive day on Tuesday due to snowfall in Peer Ki Gali and adjoining areas. Traffic on the road typically ceases during winter months due to snow accumulation. Although the road was recently cleared for one-way traffic, fresh snowfall between Friday and Monday necessitated its closure once again.
