Srinagar- Following “urgent directions’ from the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and the Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary the administration on Tuesday evening opened the Sanat Nagar flyover for traffic movement.

Senior officials from the Roads and Buildings (R&B) Department said that the decision came after repeated public complaints over traffic jams and commuter distress in the area.

“The Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister passed urgent directions for immediate opening of the flyover as people were facing daily hardships. The structure is ready for traffic movement, while minor finishing works will continue,” said the senior R&B official.

Notably, the Sanat Nagar flyover, a key link on the Srinagar Airport Road and part of the city’s broader decongestion plan, is expected to ease vehicular pressure and streamline traffic flow towards Hyderpora and Rambagh.

NH-44’s Three-Flyover Chain Completed with New Opening

The government on Tuesday evening opened the Sanat Nagar flyover for public movement, completing the trio of flyovers along the 3.23-km NH-44 decongestion corridor between Bemina and Nowgam.

With this, Bemina, Nowgam and Sanat Nagar flyovers are now all operational, creating Srinagar’s ‘first 3.23-km NH-44 decongestion uninterrupted tri-flyover corridor’ aimed at easing pressure on one of the busiest stretches of the city.

A senior official said that the Sanat Nagar segment had faced delays earlier due to technical issues and utility-shifting work, including power, drainage and telecom lines, but is now completed and open.  “Those hurdles slowed us down, but the corridor is fully functional now,” he said.

Commuters welcomed the development.

“This junction troubled people for years. Opening it will finally bring some relief,” said Javid Ahmad, a commuter from Hyderpora. Another commuter from Rawalpora said, “Traffic would choke here every evening. This was long overdue.”

To ease chronic congestion on NH-44 in Srinagar, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) planned three flyovers at Bemina, Nowgam and Sanat Nagar in the year 2020. Bemina and Nowgam flyovers were completed first, while Sanat Nagar faced delays due to technical and utility-shifting issues.

With the recent opening of Sanat Nagar, “all three flyovers are now functional, forming the 3.23-km tri-flyover corridor” aimed at reducing traffic bottlenecks on one of the city’s busiest routes. (with KNO inputs)