World’s highest tunnel to boost connectivity to Ladakh: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday carried out the ‘first blast’ for the Shinku La tunnel in Ladakh, aimed at providing all-weather connectivity from Manali to Leh via the Nimmu-Padam-Darcha axis.

The ‘first blast’ is significant as it marks the beginning of the tunnel’s construction by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), which is at the centre of India’s forward infrastructure push.

Speaking at the Kargil war memorial here, Modi described it as a pioneering project that will “boost all-weather connectivity to Ladakh and ease the lives of the locals who face troubles because of the harsh weather.”

The blast was carried out remotely from Dras.

The tunnel at 15,800 ft, expected to be ready in four years, will be the world’s highest, surpassing China’s Mila tunnel at 15,590 ft.

The construction of the tunnel will further boost military mobility and logistics support for deployed forces in the Ladakh sector as the Nimmu-Padam-Darcha road will provide the third connectivity option to Ladakh. Connectivity between Nimmu and Darcha was achieved in March this year and the road is being blacktopped, as previously reported by HT.

The development comes at a time when the military standoff between India and China in eastern Ladakh has entered its fifth year, with no indication of a resolution to the outstanding problems along the contested Line of Actual Control (LAC), although India is hoping ongoing negotiations will help restore the status quo ante of April 2020.

The 4.1-km long Shinku La tunnel will cut the distance between Manali and Leh by 60 km.

It will be an alternative to the Manali-Leh and the traditional Srinagar-Leh route. The Nimmu-Padam-Darcha road is strategically important as it is shorter than the other two axes, and crosses only one pass – the 16,615-ft high Shinku La.

BRO has completed 330 projects at a cost of ₹8,737 crore in the last three years, and significantly improved the strategic mobility of the Indian armed forces along the border with China. It is also on the verge of completing an ambitious project to provide much-needed alternative connectivity to Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO), India’s northernmost military base near LAC.

The construction of the 130-km road from Sasoma in the Nubra Valley to DBO near the Karakoram Pass is in its final phase. The existing 255-km Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi (DS-DBO) road runs close to LAC. Sasoma and Darbuk can be reached from Leh via two different road axes.

India’s border infrastructure push has been propelled by speedy execution of strategic projects to support military operations, increased spending, and focussed adoption of technology and techniques.

BRO has been given a capital outlay of ₹6,500 crore in the defence budget for 2024-25. This is 30% higher than the allocation for FY 2023-24 and 160% higher than what it was in FY 2021-22.