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The Border Roads Organisation (BRO), tasked with the construction of the Khardung La tunnel in Ladakh, has shifted blame to the Union Territory administration for the inordinate delay in starting this strategically important project to enhance connectivity in the Himalayan region.
The BRO pointed out that the work on the proposed 5.5-km-long Khardung Lal tunnel in Ladakh could not start due to the absence of financial support from the UT government.

The proposed tunnel, to be constructed under Khardung La—one of the world's highest motorable roads—has been awaiting execution despite the fact that the BRO has prepared the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the same.

The BRO officials revealed that the work could have moved faster if the UT government had provided funds for the project. They, however, announced that it would now construct the tunnel through the defence budget.

The issue came to light during a briefing to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence, where BRO officials stated that DPRs for both the Khardung La tunnel and another proposed tunnel on the Batalik road had already been completed. These projects were initially entrusted to the BRO by the Ladakh administration. However, officials pointed out that no funding mechanism was put in place beyond the DPR stage.

In 2022 UT administration promised to prepare DPR.

It is important to mention here that in November 2022, the Ladakh Union Territoryadministration had announced a Detailed Project Report (DPR) of this project would be prepared very soon to start execution of the same.

It is pertinent to mention that an all-weather Khardung La tunnel would enhance connectivity between valleys for facilitating the movement of the military, civilians, and tourists in the region. The construction of this tunnel will lead to faster, safer, and smoother movement of internal traffic, resulting in the all-around economic development of Ladakh.

The proposed 5.5 km long Khardung La tunnel is expected to shorten the travel time by an hour fromLeh to Nubra Valley. This will also help increase the safety of travellers by bypassing landslide/avalanche-prone areas.

Besides, it would also protect the Khardung glacier, which is a major source of water for Leh town, from receding due to the increase in heat emitted by automotive vehicular movement.

DG BRO briefs Parliament panel on the status of ambitious project

The Director General (DG) BRO, while briefing the members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence, informed them that the DPRs for both the roads (the Khardung La tunnel and the other tunnel, which were proposed for the Batalik Road) were done by us because these were entrusted to us by the UT of Ladakh. However, beyond the DPR, there is no funding mechanism available.

"Now, we are trying to do the Khardung La tunnel through the defence budget. It will happen first, as it is of priority, and the process is currently on. If the UT government had funded these tunnels, we could have gone ahead. The funds could be arranged to make this tunnel. But between the two, the Khardung La tunnel stands as the priority," the top BRO officer said.

Asked about the status of the all-weather tunnel being built under the treacherous high-altitude Shinkun La pass, the DG BRO submitted, "Shunkun La Tunnel is going well in time, and we are making good progress in that. As regards the NPD (Nimmu-Padum-Darcha) road, we plan to inaugurate it this year itself."