Zoji La cleared, Srinagar-Leh opens April 15th?

The 434-km-long Srinagar-Leh National Highway will be put through on April 15, as five feet to 40 feet accumulated snow has been cleared, a senior BEACON official said.

We have removed all the snow from the highway, BEACON Chief Engineer A K Botaney told UNI this afternoon.

However, he said it will take about two weeks more to make the highway, linking Drass, second coldest place in the world, Kargil and Leh with the rest of the country, safe for traffic.

He said there are reports of shooting of stones and threat of snow avalanches in some identified areas. We are taking care of the threat, he said adding the traffic will be allowed only once there is zero per cent danger.

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We have to remove six feet to 40 feet of snow which had accumulated on the road by pressing into service more than 20 snow cutters and other sophsticated machine from both sides of the Zojila, the Chief Engineer said giving to his men for early reopening of the highway.

He said, at captain morh and adjacent areas there was more than 40 feet of snow on the road.

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The 80-km-long Srinagar-Sonmarg stretch was declared open last week after the BEACON and civil authorities put a joint effort.

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Manali-Leh road work in progress

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is now engaged in clearing snow and reopening the 474-km-long Manali-Leh highway— one of the highest roads in the world.

The highway, which runs north of Manali has now been opened to vehicular traffic up to Gulaba about 23 km from here.

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According to Lt-Colonel Jaswant Sinha, OC, 70 RCC, Border Roads Organisation, efforts are being made to open the Rohtang pass, gateway to tribal district of Lahaul-Spiti by the last week of April this year.

He said the snow-clearance operation on the Manali-Leh highway this year began on February 18. At present the snow clearing equipment has reached the Beas nullah, the 32-km point of the Manali-Leh highway.

He stated that snow clearance was fast this year as three independent teams were deployed for opening the 222- km Manali- Sarchu section of the Manali-Leh road with the help of snow cutter, as well as other modern machines.

The team from Manali is just short of Marhi, while the second team is clearing snow near Khoksar. The third team is moving towards the 4,883-meter high Baralacha Pass.

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March 18th : Footing it across the Rohtang

The snowbound Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh has been cleared partially, allowing only pedestrians to pass, officials said Monday.

Fifteen people were allowed to cross the 13,050 ft-high pass in Kullu district Monday. Most of the pass, located around 55 km from here, remains under heavy snow.

The pedestrian path has been cut through the snow by the Border Roads Organisation, which looks after the road.

“The state government has set up rescue posts on both sides of the pass with the help of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute to help pedestrians cross it,” said Abhishek Jain, Kullu district magistrate.

“Expert climbers will be on standby at these posts to help travellers cross the snow-laden pass safely,” he said.