High mountain passes in Himachal open for traffic ahead of schedule

The high mountain passes in Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh have been cleared of snow and opened for vehicular traffic much ahead of the schedule this summer, leading to early connectivity for remote areas of the state.

The Manali-Leh road having four important passes was recently opened, more than one and a half months ahead of schedule. It usually opens in May or June after remaining blocked with snow for more than six months. But this time, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) declared it open on March 28 after having cleared snow on Baralachla (16,047 feet), Nakeela (16,170 ft), Lachungla (16,616 ft) and Tanglangla (17,582 ft). However, due to snowfall at Baralachla last week, the route has again been closed for a few days, with some people stuck on both sides of the pass.