Locals Join Hands with BRO to Restore Keylong-Manali Highway
Keylong/Manali, Sept 6: With vegetables rotting in fields and apple harvest stuck in orchards, hundreds of locals rolled up their sleeves today to help restore the Keylong–Manali highway, battered by rains, floods, and landslides.
The worst damage has been reported at Pagal Nallah on the north side and between Dhundhi and Manali near the south portal of the Atal Tunnel.
Villagers, especially from Koksar and Sissu panchayats, came together in a massive ‘Shramdan’ drive, working shoulder to shoulder with BRO teams.
They mainly youth and Mahila mandals also serving foods to drivers and workers making it a people’s movement to restore the highway
The effort, hailed as a model for the rest of Himachal, is aimed at clearing routes so stranded people can move out and perishable produce can reach markets before it goes to waste.
Authorities said efforts are on to restore light traffic movement through Old Manali towards Aleo, Nagar, and Kullu.
Meanwhile, the Manali–Katarain stretch of the highway remains badly snapped, where NHAI has deployed heavy machinery for urgent repair.
Reports from the ground suggest that local MLAs and community leaders are motivating workers and villagers alike to speed up the restoration work. Restoration between Kullu and Mandi is also in progress.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu personally inspected the damaged stretches in Old Manali and Kullu today.
He directed PWD, BRO, and NHAI officials to work on a war footing, assuring people that road connectivity will be restored at the earliest.
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