No end in sight
The Jammu-Srinagar National highway continues to remain closed for the seventh day on Tuesday. The highway has witnessed closure during the most part of January and February so far creating a crisis like situation in Kashmir valley.
Nor only have essentials been running in short supply but the fuel stocks too are drying up in the valley. The situation is so bad that the authorities have failed miserably to gear up its men and machinery to clear the highway and make it fir for vehicles to travel on it.
The situation in Jammu is also worrisome as thousands of Kashmir bound passengers have been left stranded from the past two weeks and the administration has failed to offer them any solace. Even yesterday some goons attacked the stranded passengers who were protesting against the government’s inability to come to their rescue.
At present around 3000 vehicles are stranded between Jammu and Srinagar due to closure of the highway following series of landslides at Peeda, Sherbibi, Digdol, Maroog, Anokhi Fall, Panthyal, Nashri, KhooniNallah and Gangroo areas.
According to rough estimates, around 1500 trucks carrying essential supplies including ration, 300 oil tankers, 100 load carriers loaded with vegetables and fruits, and as many gas tankers, 300 vehicles carrying cattle and chicken and 700 light motor vehicles are stranded at various locations.
With little hopes of any government help coming in anytime soon, the stranded passengers at Maroog are risking their lives by descending down the two-km-long treacherous and risky hillock, cross a rivulet, ascend another one-km-long hill upwards, to ultimately reach the other side of the rivulet for their onward journey.
The highway has once again become prone to landslides and shooting stones. This phenomenon has emerged after the widening of the highway has been allotted to private contractors who have shelved all scientific ways and proper process to excavate hills for road construction works.
The private contractors who have been sublet the highway expansion works have resorted to wanton excavation in vulnerable areas like Ramban and Banihal which have now become landslide-prone.
The highway which was earlier troubling commuters at Nashri, Peeda, Panthyal, KhooniNallah and Battery Chashma only is now offering miseries at Maroog, Sherbibi, Digdol and Gangroo areas, which have become very risky and unpredictable.
The most concerning part is that the administration is in know of it all however, there is no serious effort from it to offer some solution so that the situation can ease out a bit.
Even yesterday some senior officials in Jammu which included IGP Traffic and Div Com Jammu visited the highway but no concrete measure was announced to get the highway through.
What is alarming is that the weather is showing no improvement and for the next few days as well rains and snowfall have been predicted along the PirPanchal range which means that the highway is going to witness yet another downpour. In such a scenario the condition of the highway will worsen further, which will in return delay its opening for few more days.
KV Network
