As many as 60 persons, including 40 soldiers of a Rashtriya Rifles unit, were rescued by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) after they were stranded in a snowbound area in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district, a defence spokesman said on Tuesday (January 27, 2026).
The BRO successfully carried out the high-altitude rescue and road restoration operation under Project Sampark at Chatergala Pass situated at an altitude of 10,500 ft in the Bhaderwah-Chatergala axis, the spokesman said in a statement.
He said the 118 Road Construction Company (RCC) of 35 Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) began the operation on January 24, a day after heavy snowfall which continued for nearly 40 hours, clearing approximately 38 km of road covered under five to six feet of snow.
The route was opened by January 25 evening, enabling safe evacuation of 20 stranded civilians and 40 personnel of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles (RR), along with weapons and stores, the spokesman said.
The rescue mission was completed by early hours of January 26 with zero casualties, underscoring the professionalism of BRO personnel operating in the challenging high-altitude terrain amid extreme weather conditions, the statement said.
