Manali road in limbo: Flood-hit lifeline crawls through delays

The Kullu-Manali National Highway (NH-03), a lifeline for Himachal Pradesh’s tourism and commerce, is limping back to life after the devastating August 26 floods tore it apart along the Beas. Though partially reopened to one-way traffic on September 16, the 38-km battered stretch remains a shadow of its former self, restricted to a few hours of daily movement to allow repair works.

For the thousands who rely on this road, whether to ferry apples from orchards, attract tourists to Manali or simply commute between villages, the prolonged uncertainty is testing patience. Frustration has now spilled onto the streets, with residents demanding a clear timeline for two-way restoration.

At the forefront of these protests stands social activist Budhi Prakash Thakur, who has accused the authorities of dragging their feet. “Work on crate walls and protective embankments is crawling at a snail’s pace,” he said, adding that the visible deployment of labourers is nowhere near enough for the scale of damage. Thakur warned that at the current rate, even a temporary fix could take three more months, delaying black-topping and pushing back full restoration well into next year. Sources inside the project admit that the real roadblock isn’t just boulders and landslides, it’s money. Contractors’ dues remain unpaid, choking their ability to clear wages or purchase material. As a result, the workforce is thinning and progress has slowed to a crawl. What should have been an emergency recovery effort has turned into a drawn-out ordeal.

Local residents are equally scathing. Somesh, a farmer from Raison, recalls that the NH was only recently widened, yet it has collapsed again with the floods. “This has become routine. Every monsoon, the highway gives way. What does this say about construction quality?” he asked. Others, including Vinay, Atul and Harish, echoed these doubts, pointing to the abandoned four-lane plan. Land was acquired years ago, but the Detailed Project Report (DPR) was scrapped for being “unsuitable to terrain.” Instead, a downgraded two-lane design was adopted, one that locals believe left the road vulnerable to accidents and disasters.

Residents are now pushing for the highway to be handed over to the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) or the Public Works Department (PWD). “Look at BRO-maintained routes in the Himalayas. They stand firm against similar disasters,” argued Anil, a Manali shopkeeper.

For a state already battling climate-induced vulnerabilities, the battered Kullu-Manali highway is more than just a logistical setback. It’s a reminder that infrastructure without resilience is no lifeline at all. The hope now is that louder local voices will force quicker, sturdier action before the next flood washes away more than just tarmac.