Highway disruption causes petrol crisis in Kashmir

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, January 11

Most petrol refuelling stations across the Kashmir Valley ran out of stock on Saturday as the shutdown of the only functioning highway has led to the shortage of essential supplies.

The refuelling stations have placed placards of “no petrol” to inform the customers about the latest crisis.

In Srinagar, the main city of the Valley, most of the refuelling stations have remained out of stock for the last three days that has forced hundreds of vehicles to queue outside those stations which still had fuel available.

The latest crisis has been caused by a lengthy disruption of the Srinagar-Jammu highway, the main route for supply of essential supplies and passenger traffic into the Valley.

The highway has faced disruption for the past six days as heavy snowfall earlier this week had forced its shutdown and the traffic flow has now been disrupted by the slippery conditions along the dangerous mountainous stretches.

An official of the Traffic Department said the condition of the highway remained “very bad” due to slippery conditions.

“There are nearly 1,500 to 2,000 passenger vehicles that are stranded and nearly 3000 trucks and tankers that are stuck,” the official said.

The official said the freezing night temperatures caused frost on the mountainous stretches of the highway on both sides of the Jawahar Tunnel. “The disruptions are from Banihal up to Qazigund town. The situation is such that not a single vehicle is able to move,” he said.

The crisis is likely to increase in the coming days as the weather department has forecast another spell of snowfall in the region.

Snowfall is expected in the region over the next two days on Sunday and Monday which is likely to further block the highway and hamper the clearance efforts.