Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remains closed for third day

Jammu: The strategic Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remained closed for the third consecutive day Wednesday as a 25-metre portion of a road sank in Ramban town, officials said. The road sank late Tuesday afternoon and efforts are on to repair the damaged portion to restore traffic on the highway - the only all weather road linking Kashmir with rest of the country, the officials said.

The 270-km highway was closed on Monday following major landslides triggered by incessant rains and snowfall, leaving hundreds of Jammu-bound vehicles stranded. "The damaged section of the highway was restored with concreting and Granular sub-base (GSB) laying. The concrete needs 8-10 hours for consolidation," Deputy Commissioner, Ramban, Showkat Aijaz Bhat said.

After setting of concrete, he said vehicles would be allowed to ply on the highway. The officials said the rest of the highway is traffic worthy after agencies concerned cleared the debris of the landslides at Moum Passi near Ramsu and several other places.

"The traffic on the highway is likely to be allowed to ply later in the day," they said. The frequent closure of the highway over the past one month has led to shortage of fuel and other essential commodities in the valley.