Srinagar-Leh Highway: Zojila pass reopens in record time

Zojila, Apr 2: Zojila Pass along the strategic Srinagar- Leh National Highway connecting Kashmir Valley to Ladakh was officially reopened for vehicular movement on Tuesday after remaining closed for record minimum duration.

The road was connected and thrown open for vehicular movement after a closure of 32 days on April 1 by Border Roads Organisation (BRO). Member of Parliament Ladakh Mohammad Hanifa Jan, GOC 14 Corps, GOC 15 Corps and, Director General BRO Lt Gen Raghu Srinivasan attended the road opening ceremony at zero point Zojila, where they flag off the first convoy towards Ladakh from Sonamarg side on Tuesday, in the presence of other dignitaries.

Zojila Pass, one of the most critical and challenging high-altitude passes in the world, serves as a strategic lifeline connecting Ladakh with the Kashmir Valley and the rest of India. As per the BRO, this year's achievement of reopening the road in record time was particularly remarkable, "given the extreme weather conditions and the swift timeline in which the pass was reopened by the brave personnel of BRO."

As per BRO, this year the pass faced an unusually short but intense closure period due to relentless snowfall caused by a Western Disturbance from February 27 to March 16.

BRO officials said that working under extreme conditions, battling sub-zero temperatures, high velocity winds, and avalanche-prone terrain, the BRO teams cleared the snow in a record 15 days, from March 17 to March 31. The sheer volume of accumulated snow posed a formidable challenge. "However, the indomitable spirit of BRO personnel under Project Beacon and Project Vijayak and the support and efforts of the administration ensured that restoration efforts commenced immediately after the snowfall subsided,” the officials further said.