The Srinagar-Leh national highway reopened to vehicular traffic on March 19 after it was closed due to heavy snowfall in January. Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhary, director-general of the BRO, opened traffic on the strategic 434-km highway at the Zojila Pass, located at an elevation of 11,650 feet meters.
Following a successful trial movement, the road will be reopened for civil traffic following an inspection by the civil administration. Zojila is a strategic pass that provides a vital link between Kashmir valley and Ladakh, and is instrumental in the military’s operational readiness. Heavy snowfall closes the pass for much of the year. This year, it was cleared off quickly.
‘Historically, this pass has been closed about six months a year, but last year we decided to keep it closed for a longer period of time. We kept the road closed for about 110 days last year, and there were many benefits. This year, we reopened the road in 73 days,’ Lt Gen Chaudhary said.
According to him, the highway was kept open until January 4, after which it was closed due to heavy snowfall. Project Beacon, which operates the highway in J-K, as well as Project Vijayak, which operates it in Ladakh, have both managed to reopen the highway in record time.
According to the BRO DG, reopening the highway sooner has many strategic and socio-economic advantages. ‘From a strategic viewpoint, maintenance, including ammunition, logistics and everything else, for our troops deployed in Ladakh will reach in time now. It will also increase trade and commerce there, and people are very pleased,’ he said.
According to the lieutenant general, a study shows that the government can save around Rs 7 crore per day if the road is opened sooner. As a result of reopening the road sooner, we saved about Rs 400 crore — money spent on air transportation.
The BRO, through its projects Beacon and Vijayak, resumed snow clearing operations on the highway on February 15. ‘On March 3, connectivity across Zojila Pass was initially established, and following that, the road surface was improved for safe passage of vehicles’, he said.
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