LEH: Union Minister for Road, Transport and National Highways Nitin Gadkari is likely to visit the union territory of Ladakh next month where he will inspect the progress of work on the Asia’s longest 14.5 km Zojila tunnel, connecting Ladakh to the rest of the world via road, throughout the year.
The construction work on the Zojila tunnel resumed last week, a month after it was stopped after a massive avalanche struck killing two labourers.
Official sources informed The Earth News that Gadkari will arrive in Jammu and Kashmir on April 10, and is likely to visit Ladakh the next day.
“Gadkari is scheduled to visit Zojila tunnel being constructed on Srinagar-Kargil National Highway. It is not yet decided whether he will visit the tunnel on April 10 or 11, but he will definitely visit the tunnel and inspect the ongoing work there,” they said.
Zojila tunnel is seen as the lifeline for the Union Territory of Ladakh, as it will connect the region by road for complete year. As of now, the Srinagar-Kargil-Leh National Highway remains close for three months due to heavy snowfall in and around Zojila.
Once the Zojila tunnel is commissioned, the economy of the area will receive a boost, and the tunnel will provide all-weather road connectivity to the Ladakh region.
The tunnel would make the Srinagar-Kargil-Leh highway free from avalanches, augment safety in the region, and significantly reduce travel time by over three hours, to a mere 15 minutes. The distance between Baltal and Minamarg will be reduced to approximately 13 kilometers from the existing 40-kilometer route.
The ongoing work on the tunnel was temporarily suspended on February 25 after an avalanche hit the area killing two labourers, but was resumed last week.
