Gadkari reviews Zojila tunnel work

Zojila (J&K): Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari along with a 13-member Parliamentary committee on Monday reviewed the construction work of the strategic Zojila tunnel, which will provide all-weather connectivity between Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

While terming the tunnel historic, the minister said that the project is part of a dream to connect the Kashmir valley with Kanyakumari. The Union minister also announced that the Z-Morh tunnel, which connects Gagangir with Sonamarg and provides all-weather connectivity to the resort in the Ganderbal district of central Kashmir, will be inaugurated in October this year.

"This is a historic and important tunnel in the history of India. The tunnel length is supposed to be the highest in Asia," Gadkari told reporters after inspecting the work on the site at an altitude of over 11,500 feet. The Union minister led a 13-member delegation of the Parliamentary consultative committee on the ministry. The tunnel project – through the mighty Zojila Pass at an altitude of 11,578 feet on the Srinagar-Kargil-Leh National highway – is of strategic importance as the highway remains closed during winters due to heavy snowfall, cutting off the Ladakh region from Kashmir. The single-tube Zojila tunnel – from Baltal, in the Ganderbal district of central Kashmir, to Minimarg, in Drass town of Kargil district of Ladakh, is 13 km long with an approach road of 18 km. Gadkari said the estimated cost of the project was Rs 12,000 crore, but, after discussions with experts and international consultants for a year, its cost was brought down by Rs 5,000 crore.

"This is the first time in the history of our country that we have a saving of Rs 5,000 crore as far as the estimated cost is concerned. This is a very difficult task, the people are working here in minus 26 degrees," he said. This is to be a state-of-art-project and with the cooperation of J-K LG Manoj Sinha and his administration, it will be very helpful for us, he said. Laying out a roadmap for connecting several cities across the country, Gadkari said the Zojila tunnel is one of the important things of "our dream to connect Kashmir to Kanyakumari". This will be connectivity between north to south, he added. He also applauded engineers and contractors, saying it is very difficult to work here. The union minister said about 38 per cent of the work has been completed, and a part of the project will be inaugurated this year for providing relief to the people.

"With the permission of the prime minister, the LG, we want to try to inaugurate a part of the project because that will give relief to the people," he said. According to Harpal Singh, Project Head of Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd, which is constructing the project, the total length of the project from Sonamarg to Minimarg is 31 km.