BRO opens Rohtang Pass for 3 weeks in advance to ensure supply of essentials
NEW DELHI: To ensure supply of essentials, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) opened the Rohtang Pass on Saturday, three weeks ahead of the schedule, senior BRO officers said.
The snow clearance for opening the 13,500-ft high Rohtang Pass, gateway to the Lahaul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh, is conducted every year as it remains snowbound for almost six months — from mid-November to mid-May.
During these six months, the Lahaul and Spiti district remains isolated from the rest of the country and dependent on airways for external logistics and supplies.
On April 11, the Himachal Pradesh government approached the Ministry of Defence and the Director General (Border Roads) to expedite the snow clearance to facilitate return of farmers to start cultivation and movement of essential supplies and relief material to the Lahaul Valley in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic. (IANS)