Uttarakhand. The Tanakpur Pithoragarh NH, which is considered the life line of Champawat and Pithoragarh district, has been closed in Swala for the last four days due to which hundreds of vehicles and passengers are stranded in the NH for the last four days, which includes a large number of women, children and elderly. Due to the closure of NH, there is a shortage of vegetables and other essential commodities in the cities of Champawat, Lohaghat, Pithoragarh etc. Due to the closure of traffic, there is silence in the NH. The machines of NH are working on a war footing to open the NH closed in Swala. Executive Engineer of NH Ashutosh Kumar said that efforts are continuously going on to open the NH in Swala. By making ramps, the stranded passengers are being taken out on foot.
He said that if the debris does not come from the hill, then the NH will be opened by this evening. He said that an alternative route has been prepared in the NH at Patan Nursery of Lohaghat, in which the movement of vehicles will start today. The NH which was closed at other places has been opened. The Executive Engineer said that the NH has suffered a loss of more than 3 crore rupees in this disaster. The passengers stranded for the last 4 days due to the closure of the NH are very upset and are waiting for the NH to open. However, the administration has made arrangements for the stay and food of the passengers, although the chances of NH opening are still less today. At the same time, due to the closure of the services of the Transport Corporation for four days, the Lohaghat depot has suffered a loss of more than ₹ 15 lakh.
DM Champawat has instructed the NH officials to open the NH soon. Overall, due to the closure of the NH, the people of two districts are facing a lot of problems at this time. The danger zone of Swala has become a big headache for the administration and the public. The stones coming from the hill can cause a major accident anytime.
