MANALI: Vehicular movement was hit on the Manali-Leh highway (NH-03) on Thursday after a massive rockslide blocked it on Wednesday night. With huge boulders sitting on the road, leading to massive traffic jam on either side, officials began diverting light vehicles to Manali-Palchan bypass road while heavy vehicles were made to wait for clearing of the debris.
A Border Roads Organisation (BRO) official said, “One of the boulders is really huge. We are working on breaking it into pieces by drilling and blasting. We have deployed adequate number of jawans and machines and hope to restore the traffic by night.”
This particular area near Nehru Kund, about 7km from Manali, is prone to landslides and avalanches. It has witnessed many landslides in the past. After a brief halt in sliding in the area over the past few months, the recent heavy rainfall has activated it (sliding) again.
