Following a 10-day closure due to adverse weather conditions and avalanches at Zojila Pass, the Srinagar-Leh highway has been reopened for stranded passenger vehicles. Our correspondent reports that reopening of this 434-kilometre highway brings relief to the travellers and residents of Ladakh who were cut off from the rest of the country.

The highway was closed due to multiple avalanches and snow accumulation at Zojila and Meenamarg. Initially, the officials have limited the reopening of highway to passenger vehicles, specifically those stranded during the closure.

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO), responsible for maintaining the highway, undertook a massive operation to clear snow from Drass and Sonamarg simultaneously.

Reopening of the highway is expected to restore transportation of essential items and revive trade links, providing much-needed relief to the region’s residents and businesses affected by the extended closure. With weather conditions stabilizing, authorities are diligently working to ensure the safe passage of vehicular traffic along this vital highway to the Union Territory.