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The death toll successful the Zojila Pass avalanche touched seven connected Saturday (March 28, 2026), adjacent arsenic questions were raised implicit postulation regulations on the Ladakh-Kashmir axis, 1 of the astir unsafe and unpredictable road successful the state astatine an elevation of 2,528 metres.
The assemblage of a missing civilian, identified arsenic Ali Akbar Shadab, was recovered connected Saturday (March 28, 2026) during the hunt cognition which resumed astatine 6 a.m. earlier concluding aboriginal successful the day. Two women were among the dead, officials said.
“A full of 13 radical were impacted successful the avalanche. Five radical were reported dormant connected Friday. One critically injured was shifted to the Kargil hospital, but died connected Saturday. The seventh assemblage was recovered from the avalanche tract successful the morning. Six radical remain under treatment,” said Dr. Sajjad Hussain, Block Medical Officer, Drass.
Officials said the rescue operation was carried retired by the teams of civilian administration, the Army, and the Border Road Organisation (BRO). Several vehicles buried nether snowfall were tracked and removed from the Srinagar-Leh highway, the lone aboveground nexus betwixt Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The road remains highly prone to avalanches, landslides, and shooting stones for the astir portion of the year.
Meanwhile, authorities successful Kashmir connected Saturday (March 28, 2026) warned of imaginable avalanche hazard successful Ganderbal district, which houses the Zojila Pass, and Bandipora territory implicit the adjacent 24 hours.
The advisory for Ganderbal, issued by the Ganderbal Deputy Commissioner, warned that “there was a mean strength hazard of avalanche supra 2400 meters successful Ganderbal”.
“People person been strictly advised to debar venturing into avalanche-prone areas, including steep slopes, hilly terrain, and higher reaches, until further orders are issued. The medication has besides appealed to residents, tourists, and nomadic communities to adhere to authoritative guidelines and cooperate successful ensuring nationalist safety,” said the advisory.
The civilian deaths successful Friday’s (March 27, 2026) avalanche have brought the postulation absorption connected the Srinagar-Ladakh highway, which remained closed for postulation connected Saturday, nether a scanner. The avalanche was seemingly triggered owed to a emergence successful the somesthesia triggered by the agleam sunlight astatine noon, which is considered communal during the period of March. The incidental took spot betwixt 12:30 and 1 p.m., officials said.
“March is an avalanche-prone month. We section radical recognize that allowing postulation astir 5:30 a.m. from the Kargil broadside for 2 hours and past from 8 a.m. up to 10 a.m. from the Kashmir broadside makes it safe. Because chances of avalanche during the greeting hours are minimum,” said Mohammad Jaffer Akhoon, Chief Executive Councillor (CEC), Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil.
At present, postulation on the 25-kilometre stretch is allowed aft 8 a.m. Mr. Akhoon besides flagged the contented of mixing up dense centrifugal vehicles with airy centrifugal vehicles. “Advisory suggests that dense centrifugal vehicles are lone allowed aft the airy centrifugal vehicles. However, some were contiguous erstwhile the avalanche deed connected Friday,” helium said.
The CEC said the contented volition beryllium raised with Ladakh Lieutenant-Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena and officials successful Jammu and Kashmir.
