Highway Hiccups: Slow, painful, open, one-way
Ramban, Sep 18: The Srinagar-Jammu National Highway remained open on Thursday for one-way traffic of passenger Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs) from Jammu towards Srinagar, including Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban districts, traffic authorities said.
They said that LMVs and heavy vehicles from Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban were also permitted to travel to Jammu during the day.
The cut-off timing for Jammu-bound traffic from these districts was fixed between 7 am and 10 am at the Nashri Tunnel, while Srinagar-bound traffic from Jammu had the same timing window at Nagrota.
After clearing passenger vehicles, apple-laden trucks from Qazigund, Kashmir, were allowed to move towards Jammu through the landslide-affected Chenani-Udhampur sector in a regulated manner.
Officials said traffic at Tharad continues to be managed on a rotational basis due to an uneven, unpaved road stretch that hampers the smooth flow of vehicles.
Meanwhile, empty oil tankers and other heavy vehicles were also permitted to move from Qazigund towards Jammu in the afternoon.
These vehicles were crossing the Banihal-Nashri sector and heading towards Jammu under strict regulation till late evening.
According to officials, hundreds of fruit-laden trucks crossed the Tharad area in the last two days, moving towards Jammu and other parts of the country.
Authorities said efforts were underway to clear the backlog of stranded vehicles in Qazigund.
Traffic officials have cautioned security forces and other vehicle operators not to ply convoys and other vehicles against the advisory, warning of congestion along the narrow stretches between Tharad and Balli Nullah in Udhampur, and Maroog to Kishtwari Pather in Ramban. Commuters have been advised to confirm the status of the highway through the Traffic Control Units (TCUs) in Srinagar, Ramban, Udhampur, and Jammu or through official social media handles of the J&K Traffic Police.
Despite regulated movement, vehicle operators reported difficulties crossing the 250-300 meter unpaved stretch at Tharad, where road sinking has created deep ditches.
National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has deployed men and machinery to fill the ditches with stones.
Passenger bus driver Shakti Singh, who reached Ramban from Jammu, acknowledged the hardships but expressed relief that the highway was open.
“At least the road is open for traffic, which is a big relief,” he said.
