Jammu-Srinagar national highway partially restored for vehicular movement

After remaining closed for six days, the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was partially restored for vehicular movement on Monday.

Officials said the highway has been partially restored, and first, the stranded vehicles will be cleared.

Over 2,000 vehicles were stranded on the highway after massive damage was caused to the road by landslides on August 26.

Since the highway has been restored for partial traffic, officials have advised drivers to follow lane discipline as any overtaken on the narrow stretch could cause a blockade of vehicular movement.

"Any congestion will cause huge inconvenience to commuters, and the smooth passage of vehicles can be adversely affected," officials said.

The traffic department statement said, "Traffic was restored partially on Jammu-Srinagar NHW. Stranded vehicles were being cleared."

J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah visited the national highway on Sunday and said later that complete restoration could take 20-25 days, but an alternate route had been made available for traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar highway.

Officials added that the Mughal Road, Srinagar-Leh highway and the Sinthan Pass leading to Kishtwar from the Valley are also open for traffic.

Torrential rains killed 136 people and injured over 100 since August 14 in the Jammu division, as massive damage was caused to bridges, government and private property.

The worst affected were the Kishtwar and the Reasi districts, where cloudburst and landslide resulted in loss of human lives.

A cloudburst in Chashoti village of Kishtwar district killed 67 people, mostly pilgrims of the Machail Mata Yatra, while a landslide on the route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Reasi district killed 36 devotees.

Lt Governor Manoj Sinha has constituted a high-level committee of officials to probe the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine landslide tragedy.

Railway traffic was adversely affected, and officials said complete restoration will take more days, even as special trains are being operated to facilitate the stranded passengers.