Badrinath highway reopened for traffic after 17 hours

The Badrinath national highway was reopened for traffic on Friday morning after over 17 hours of being blocked due to a landslide triggered by heavy rain in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district.

Hundreds of pilgrims had to spend the night in their vehicles because of the blockade. The road was blocked around 10 am on Thursday and was reopened at 3.30 am on Friday, additional information officer of Chamoli Ravindra Negi said.

Vehicles returning from Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib were cleared first, he said, adding the local administration had made arrangements for the stranded pilgrims to stay in Birhi, Chamoli and Pipalkoti and were also provided food.

The landslide occurred around 9:50 am near Chhinka, affecting a 100-metre stretch of the highway.