Kashmir's Srinagar-Leh Highway Re-Opens

ZOJILA, KASHMIR, INDIA - MARCH 19: Vehicles of senior Indian army officers pass through the snow-cleared Srinagar-Leh highway on March 19, 2022 in Zojila, 108 km (67 miles) the Pass was opened this year after a closure of 73 days, as compared to average of 135 days in previous years, east of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian administered Kashmir, India. The pass connects Kashmir with Ladakh, a region famous among foreign tourists for its monasteries, landscapes and mountains. The average snow accumulation on the rocky terrain of Zojila normally remains between 15 and 25 meters. Travellers taking the pass have to withstand snowstorms and dangerous circumstances. The 434-km-long Srinagar-Leh highway was reopened to traffic on Saturday. The strategic road remains closed for the winter months due to heavy snowfall at Zojila, one of the treacherous mountain passes located in the Kashmir region. The highway connects Srinagar with Ladakh and is the only road for the movement of Indian armed forces and people from Srinagar to the cold desert region. The road is the lifeline for the Indian Army and locals and its reopening has come as a relief for both.The highway has strategic importance and is used by the Army to replenish supplies to troops stationed at the international border in the Ladakh region. Strategically important Ladakh shares de facto borders with Pakistan and China and depends on air supplies for about six months of the year as the road connectivity remains snapped due to the accumulation of heavy snow on it. (Photo by Yawar Nazir/Getty Images)