Snow clearance on Leh highway in last phase

Kargil, March 1

The snow clearance operation along the Srinagar-Leh highway is in its last phase and efforts are being made to open the 434 km-long strategic road as soon as possible, BRO officials said today.

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is maintaining the highway which usually remains closed during winters due to heavy snowfall in the 3528 m-high Zojila Pass, a high mountain pass that runs through Kashmir to Ladakh.

BRO’s Project Vijayak Chief Engineer Ashish Gambir said the snow clearance operation was going on in full swing in the Zojila Pass and the road would be opened as soon as possible. He gave the assurance to Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC)-Kargil Chairman and Chief Executive Councillor (CEC) Feroz Ahmad Khan during a meeting here, an official spokesperson said.

Gambir said only a stretch of 2-3 km was left to be cleared of snow from Srinagar side. It was closed for vehicular traffic in January this year. The spokesperson said the chief engineer also briefed Khan about the BRO projects being taken up in Kargil district. Gambir said the work on Kargil to Batalik road is already underway. —