Itanagar: Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh virtually inaugurated 36 road and bridge projects in Arunachal Pradesh, including the strategically located Nechiphu tunnel connecting Tawang with Assam’s Balipara on Tuesday.
The defence minister dedicated to the nation a total of 90 key border infrastructure projects across the country virtually from Jammu.
The 90 projects of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) along the Line of Actual Control with China are worth Rs 2,941 crore.
Singh virtually inaugurated 22 roads, 63 bridges, Nechiphu tunnel, two airfields and two helipads across the nation, BRO officials said.
In his address, the Raksha Mantri described the BRO as ‘bro (brother)’ of the Armed Forces, asserting that, through its infrastructure projects, BRO is not only securing India’s borders, but also playing a key role in the socio-economic development of the far-flung areas.
Singh credited the timely completion of these projects to the hard work and dedication of its personnel as well as the commitment of the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Together with BRO, we are ensuring that the nation is secure and border areas are developed. Timely completion of infrastructure projects in far-flung areas has now become the new normal of New India,” he said.
Arunahcal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Director General of Police Anand Mohan witnessed the event from Sessa in West Kameng district.
Khandu, in his short speech, lauded the BRO for successful completion of the tunnel within a short span of time. He also expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi and Raksha Mantri Singh for their sincere efforts in improving connectivity in the border state.
“The only bottleneck to development in the state was its poor connectivity, owing majorly to the lackadaisical attitude of the previous governments at the Centre. Since Modi became the Prime Minister, Arunachal has witnessed complete transformation in its connectivity sector. Nechiphu Tunnel is one more example of the Centre’s commitment,” he said.
Underscoring the significance of the Nechiphu Tunnel, Khandu said that it will not only shorten the distance for people travelling on the Balipara-Charduar-Tawang (BCT) road but also ease the danger of driving in the fog that engulfs the area for most part of the year.
“Dense fog in the area made travelling on the curvy road most dangerous. Many fatal accidents have occurred in the area. This tunnel will now bypass the fog zone providing safe travel to all,” he added.
The 500-metre long Nechiphu Tunnel along with the nearing completion Sela Tunnel, will provide all-weather connectivity to the strategic Tawang Region. It will be beneficial to the Armed Forces deployed in the region and the tourists visiting Tawang. Rajnath Singh had laid the foundation stone of the tunnel in October 2020.
Complementing the BRO for its proactive role not only in constructing roads, bridges and tunnels but also in helping locals, both directly (employment) and indirectly (facilities like health centres, schools, etc), Khandu expressed hope that all projects under BRO in Arunachal will be completed successfully.
The BRO has completed the construction of these strategically-important projects in record time; most of them in a single working season using state-of-the-art technology.
Situated at an altitude of 5,700 feet, Nechiphu tunnel on the Balipara-Charduar-Tawang road in West Kameng district is a unique D-shaped single-tube double-lane tunnel that will provide all-weather connectivity to the strategic Tawang region and will be beneficial for both armed forces and tourists, officials said.
The tunnel will bypass the Nechiphu Pass, where extreme foggy conditions prevail, causing hindrance to general traffic and military convoys.
The BRO has recently completed the construction of eight roads in Arunachal Pradesh along the LAC at a cost of Rs 678 crore.
Of the total projects dedicated to the nation by Singh, 11 are in Jammu and Kashmir, 26 in Ladakh, 36 in Arunachal Pradesh, five in Mizoram, three in Himachal Pradesh, two each in Sikkim, Uttarakhand and West Bengal and one each in Nagaland, Rajasthan, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The projects inaugurated in Arunachal Pradesh include eight road projects and 20 bridges. (With inputs from PTI)
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