Strategic Sela Pass tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh to be completed by October
By Anish Kumar | First Published Sep 12, 2023, 9:25 AM ISTThe Sela tunnel project in Arunachal Pradesh is set to be completed by October, providing strategic advantages and all-weather connectivity. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will inaugurate the Nechifu Tunnel on the same route today.
The Sela tunnel project along the China border in Arunachal Pradesh will be completed by October this year after numerous delays. The project was supposed to have been completed by April 2023. However, the original deadline for the completion of the Rs 700-crore project was June 2022, which was revised to November 2022 and then to April 2023.
Sources told Asianet Newsable that the project is at an advanced stage and just a month's work is left to be completed. The strategically important tunnel would allow the rapid deployment of troops and weapons to forward areas in the Tawang sector and also provide all-weather connectivity to locals. It will also cut the travel time by over an hour to Tawang.
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The delays have been mainly caused due to the extended winter seasons and concreting work inside the tunnel. Besides, cloudbursts and landslides during the rainy season also resulted in project delays. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will today inaugurate the smaller Nechifu Tunnel on the same axis ahead of the Sela Tunnel.
Sela Tunnel
Situated in Arunachal Pradesh’s West Kameng district, the Sela project comprises of two tunnels. Tunnel 1 is a 980m long single tube tunnel while Tunnel 2 is a 1555m long twin tube tunnel.
Tunnel 2 has one bi-lane tube for traffic and one escape tube for emergencies. It will be one of the longest tunnels to have been built at an altitude of over 13,000 feet. The project also includes the construction of an approach road of 7 km to Tunnel 1, which starts from Balipara-Charduar-Tawang (BCT) Road and a link road of 1.3 km, which connects Tunnel 1 to Tunnel 2.
Announced in 2018, the project was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019. On Tuesday, Rajnath Singh will visit to Jammu and Kashmir and is expected to inaugurate 90 BRO projects amounting to Rs 2,950 crore. The projects will include a tunnel, two airstrips, two helipads, 21 new roads, and 64 bridges.
Sources said the projects to be inaugurated by the Defence Minister include the Nechifu Tunnel and the expansion of the Nyoma Advanced Landing Ground at 13,700ft into a 2.7 km long full-fledged airstrip at the cost of Rs 218 crore.
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