The UPA government is all set to showcase the start of the construction of the strategic Rohtang tunnel later this month as the fulfilment of the dream of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Following clearance from the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) for the project at a cost of about Rs 1,500 crore, UPA chairperson Sonia
Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will visit Himachal Pradesh on June 28 to mark the initiation of the construction project, 27 years after it was first conceived.
The tunnel is expected to be completed by 2015 and the world’s fourth largest construction company (an Austrian group) has been selected by the government after a global tender process. The Rohtang tunnel will be a crucial stretch on the road connecting Manali in Himachal Pradesh to Leh in J&K and will by-pass the crucial Rohtang Pass which is closed for six months a year on account of heavy snowfall. The Rohtang Pass is located at a height of 13,000 ft and is an alternate road to Leh apart from the Zoji La Pass connecting Srinagar to Leh. The strategic importance of the Rohtang Pass is immense, especially if a Kargil-type intrusion ever takes place again.
The Rohtang tunnel is intended to be an all-weather highway that will make sure that Manali and Leh are connected by road all through the year. The construction of the tunnel will also be vital for the Army in an emergency situation if rapid military mobilisation is needed in the Ladakh region. While the current distance between Manali and Leh through the Rohtang Pass is about 500 kms, the construction of the Rohtang tunnel is expected to cut the distance down by about 70 kms.
The need for such a tunnel was envisaged way back in 1983 during the prime ministership of Indira Gandhi.
A preliminary study was started in 1984 which broadly identified an alternate route bypassing the Rohtang Pass.