Hundreds of vehicles stranded as highway remains closed

Snow, rain trigger landslides; Banihal-Ramban stretch worst hit

The 300-km Jammu-Srinagar national highway remained closed for the second consecutive day, leaving hundreds of vehicles stranded on the road.
Continuous rain and snow resulted in landslides at different points on the highway, leading to the stoppage of the vehicular traffic.
Despite an alert having been sounded by the state administration, hundreds of vehicles, including 165 light motor vehicles (LMVs), are stuck on the national highway since Monday evening. The administration expects that the highway can reopen for the traffic on Wednesday morning but only if therain stops tonight.
The stretch from Banihal to Ramban is the worst-affected portion as major landslides were reported at Panthal, Chamalwas, Magerkor, Marog and Ramsoo. Some small landslides were also reported on the Udhampur-Chenani road.
“We do not have the exact number of trucks stranded, as many of them are at Mansar, Dyala Chak, Sidhra, Panjgrain, Udhampur and other areas. Eighty LMVs are stranded at Ramban and 85 at Udhampur,” said the Highway Traffic Control Room.
In most parts of Ramban district, especially in Banihal, Batote and Gool tehsils, the power supply had been disrupted since the wee hours on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, taking precautionary measures, the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board has closed the battery car track to the holy shrine since Monday evening. The helicopter service to the shrine remained suspended today for the second consecutive day. The services are expected to be restored on Wednesday, if the weather permits.
The Bani-Basholi road was also closed for traffic due to landslides at two places. The Kathua administration has announced closure of all government and private schools in the district due to bad weather for three days.

Vaishno Devi chopper service stays suspended
Hundreds of vehicles, including 165 light motor vehicles, are stuck on the national highway since Monday evening. The stretch from Banihal to Ramban is the worst-affected portion as major landslides were reported at Panthal, Chamalwas, Magerkor, Marog and Ramsoo
Taking precautionary measures, the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board closed the battery car track to the holy shrine since Monday evening. The helicopter service to the shrine remained suspended today for the second day on Tuesday