By IANS,
Jammu : Authorities have repaired and opened a road in Jammu and Kashmir, a portion of which had caved in following heavy rains early this month, cutting off more than half a million people living in two hilly districts from the rest of the state, officials said Tuesday.
Traffic movement on the Batore-Doda road was suspended after a 200-meter stretch caved in near Assar, about 150 km north of here after heavy rains Feb 5-6. This had cut off the two hilly districts of Doda and Kishtwar, causing great difficulty to the people living there and leading to a shortage of essential commodities.
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO), which maintains the roads in the region, had pressed a team into service immediately after the road caved in. Officials said the road has now been opened to light vehicular traffic with heavy motor vehicles being allowed to ply by Wednesday.
“We are making all efforts to repair the road by Tuesday evening itself,” Khursheed Ahmad Bhat, officer on special duty in Doda, told IANS over telephone.
The BRO is also working towards opening up a snow-bound Bani-Bhaderwah road, measuring 166 km, as an alternative.
“The work of clearing the snow is almost complete there,” Bhat said.