Onlykashmir.in News Desk
The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, the lifeline connecting the Kashmir Valley with the rest of the country, remained shut for a second consecutive day on Thursday as fresh landslides, mudslides and shooting stones battered several vulnerable stretches of the strategic route. Heavy overnight and intermittent daytime rainfall triggered the fresh round of slope failures, leaving restoration crews racing against the weather to reopen the 270 kilometre corridor.
Officials confirmed that hundreds of vehicles, ranging from passenger cars to heavy goods carriers, remained stranded at Udhampur, Ramban and Qazigund as men and machinery worked through the affected patches. Ramban district, long recognised as the most landslide-prone segment of NH-44, once again bore the brunt of the disruption, with shooting stones adding an extra layer of danger for repair teams working close to the exposed hillsides.
The closure underscores a recurring vulnerability that Kashmir faces every monsoon season. NH-44 is not merely a road; it is the primary supply artery for essential commodities, fuel, medicines and passenger movement into and out of the Valley. Any prolonged suspension inevitably pushes up prices of perishables in local markets and delays the movement of patients, students and daily wage travellers who depend on the highway for their livelihoods.
Traffic authorities have strongly appealed to commuters to avoid unnecessary travel until weather conditions stabilise and the road is formally certified safe for vehicular movement. Officials reiterated that lives cannot be risked chasing time, especially in stretches where the mountainside remains actively unstable. Travelers have been advised to consult official traffic advisories before setting out, rather than relying on word of mouth or outdated information.
Restoration agencies, including road maintenance units and border roads personnel, are learnt to be deployed at multiple points to clear debris and stabilise slip zones. Past experience suggests that even after clearance, authorities often permit only convoy-based movement for a few hours a day until the danger of fresh slides subsides.
For residents of Kashmir, the annual disruption of NH-44 has become an unwelcome monsoon ritual, renewing long-standing demands for all-weather infrastructure, better slope stabilisation and faster progress on tunnel projects that could bypass the most treacherous stretches altogether. Until then, commuters are left watching weather bulletins and traffic updates, hoping for a swift reopening of the Valley’s most vital road link.
