After March, commuters to have safe journey along Sgr-Jmu highway

Umaisar Gull Ganie

Ramban, Mar 06: The commuters are all set to have a safe journey along Srinagar-Jammu highway by the end of March month as the authorities here have said that the two important tunnels and a bridge in Ramban district of Jammu region will be made functional this month.

Jammu-Srinagar national highway is the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country.

Official sources told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that work on several projects in Ramban district is in progress.

“800-metre-long T5 tunnel on Panthyal stretch of the highway is set to be thrown open by March 15 while Jaiswal bridge on Udhampur-Ramban section to be made operational by March 20 and Kunfer tunnel is also expected to be completed by March 31, besides double lane of Ramban flyover and Banihal bypass to be completed by April 15 this year,” they said.

Two tunnels, having a total length of 1,680 meters, would put an end to the ‘phantom of shooting stones’ and traffic disruptions along the stretch, officials said.

The twin tunnels will not only reduce the travel time of commuters, but will also completely bypass the difficult landslides and shooting stone prone areas along the stretch, officials said.

Speaking to KNO, Deputy Commissioner, Ramban, Mussarat Islam said all the projects on Jammu Srinagar national highway will be completed by stipulated time frame. “Work on the 800-meter T-5 Tunnel to bypass Panthyal stretch, which is vulnerable to shooting stones on highway, has been accelerated so that it becomes operational by March 15, 2023”, he said.

Mussarat said work is also in progress for double laning of Ramban flyover and Banihal bypass which will be completed by April 15 this year. After the competition of these projects, people travelling on Jammu-Srinagar highway would be able have a safe journey, he added—(KNO)