Traffic suspended on Jammu-Srinagar National Highway after landslide

Vehicular traffic on the 270-km Jammu-Srinagar National Highway was suspended on Wednesday after a landslide blocked the road in Ramban district, leaving thousands of commuters stranded, Traffic Department officials said.

They said no fresh vehicle would be allowed from either Srinagar or Jammu on the highway on Thursday and only the stranded vehicles will be cleared.

Stones rolling down the hillocks overlooking the highway at Chanderkote and Digdole forced the closure of the highway, the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with rest of the country, this evening, the officials said.

They said the traffic was allowed from Srinagar towards Jammu this morning but faced frequent disruptions at the two vulnerable areas.

Despite efforts by road clearance agencies, several thousand vehicles, including trucks, remained stranded on the road between Banihal and Ramban, the officials said. They said efforts were on to clear the road.

The traffic on the highway plies alternatively from the twin capitals of Srinagar and Jammu during winter months in view of the road condition and the ongoing work on the four-laning project.