SRINAGAR: Hundreds of vehicles, including those carrying essentials and passengers, left Jammu for Kashmir valley while no vehicle was allowed from Srinagar as only one-way traffic will continue to ply on the highway.
Meanwhile, the 434-km-long highway connecting Ladakh with Kashmir valley and historic Mughal road remained closed despite snow clearance operations launched by the authorities.
A number of roads, connecting far flung and remote areas, including those near the Line of Control (LoC), also remained closed due to accumulation of several feet of snow.
“We have allowed traffic from Jammu to Kashmir today since only one-way traffic will continue on the highway,” a traffic police official said. He said since only one-way traffic will continue on the highway, no vehicle will be allowed from Srinagar to Jammu, including Army and paramilitary forces today.
“Hundreds of trucks carrying essentials – particularly fresh vegetables, chicken and meat — left different parts of Jammu this morning for Kashmir. Besides passenger vehicles also left for Srinagar,” he said.
However, the timings for Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs) to cross Nagrota is between 0600 hrs to 1000 hrs and at Udhampur is 1100 hrs. The Heavy Motor Vehicles (HMVs) will have to cross Udhampur between 0500 hrs to 1000 hrs. No vehicle will be allowed after the deadline.
Officials said that rice, atta, sugar, kerosene oil and LPG is available in adequate quantity everywhere in Kashmir province, including remote and border areas of Ladakh, Gurez, Karnah, Machil, Keran, Tangdhar. They said that food grains and petroleum products have already been duped abundance till May 2018 in these remote areas.
Dumping of food grains has been made in full for 500 sale centres in Kashmir valley, which will suffice upto ending of March 2018, where there is heavy snowfall, they added.
He said the Srinagar-Leh national highway has been closed for winter months due to accumulation of snow and slippery road condition, particularly between Sonamarg-Zojilla and Meenmarg.
However, the BRO, responsible for the maintainance of highway, had pressed into service sophisticated machines and men on work to clear snow from Meenmarg towards Zojila pass.
The snow has been cleared upto Zero-Point from Meenmarg, official source said. They said snow clearance operation from this side of the Zojilla has not been started yet.
There are more than three feet of snow accumulated at several places between Sonamarg to Zero point, including Zojilla, they added.
Traffic on the Mughal road, connecting Shopian in south Kashmir with Rajouri and Poonch in Jammu region remained closed for the past more than two weeks as about three to four feet of snow had accumulated at several places on other side of the Pir-ki-Gali. However, authorities on this side of the Gali have cleared the snow while snow clearance operation from other side to Poonch was hampered due to fresh snowfall during the past 24 hours.
Officials said snow clearance operation from Poonch has been cleared upto 40kms but there was fresh snowfall December 22.
Meanwhile, dozens of far flung and remote villages, including near LoC in North Kashmir districts of Bandipora and Kupwara remained cut off from their respective district and tehsil headquarters due to heavy snowfall recently.
The snow clearance operation was going on war footing to put through the road before the border area is cut off for rest of the winter months. The authorities have already announced to start Heli Service from Monday between Kupwara to Tangdhar and Kupwara to Machil. (AGENCIES)
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