Road repair works disrupt traffic on Sgr-Jmu NH for 3 hours

Ramban, Mar 19: The Srinagar-Jammu National Highway, the only surface link between Kashmir and the rest of the country, remained blocked for three hours due to road repair works at Dalwass on Tuesday morning.

Officials said that vehicular traffic on both sides was halted at around 6:30 am at Dalwass for necessary repair works.

They said that the companies engaged by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) carried out road repair works by laying stones, and pebbles to stabilise the slippery road stretch at Dalwass.

For this purpose, traffic on both sides was stopped.

Officials said that the highway was reopened for two-way traffic on Tuesday morning around 10 am.

“Stranded road traffic was cleared on priority. After that scheduled two-way traffic was allowed to proceed, on either side of the highway,” they said.

“Following it, Srinagar-bound load carriers, carrying essential supplies, were also allowed to proceed,” officials said.

The officials monitoring the regulation of traffic on the highway in Ramban said that load carriers stopped at Qazigund were also allowed to move towards Jammu in the afternoon.

However, they said, vehicular traffic movement remained slow due to single-lane road stretches at Dalwass, Mehar-Cafeteria, Panthyal, Magarkote, Hingni and various other places due to poor road surface conditions between Nashri and Banihal sectors.

They said that hundreds of Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs) and heavy vehicles crossed the Nashri-Banihal sector for Kashmir till late Tuesday evening.

Meanwhile, traffic authorities advised commuters and vehicle operators to follow lane discipline.

“Overtaking will lead to traffic congestion as there are narrow, single-lane road stretches at many places between Nashri and Banihal,” they said.