Snowfall, falling stones disrupt traffic on Jammu-Srinagar highway

The traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway was disrupted on Saturday due to fresh snowfall and shooting of stones from the hillocks overlooking the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country, officials said.

Light snowfall occurred at Jawahar Tunnel, the gateway to Kashmir, while rains triggered shooting of stones from the hillocks at several places between Panthiyal and Ramsoo along the 270-km highway, forcing suspension of the traffic for several hours, the traffic department officials said.

The traffic on the highway is restricted to one-way as part of the winter arrangement and plies alternatively from Jammu and Srinagar to facilitate smooth journey to the commuters in view of the ongoing work on the four-laning project.

Only Srinagar-bound vehicles were allowed on Saturday morning but were stopped after rains triggered shooting of stones at Panthiyal, Moumpassi and Sherbibi in Ramban district, the officials said, adding the highway was cleared of the debris and reopened for traffic after over two hours.

Jawahar Tunnel and adjoining areas also experienced fresh but light snowfall around 7 am, disrupting the smooth traffic, they said.

The high altitude areas of Jammu and Kashmir experienced fresh snowfall, while overnight rains lashed the plains including the twin capital cities of Jammu and Srinagar.