Rohtang Tunnel to become a reality

Yogesh Sarkar

Administrator
It seems like the Rohtang Tunnel would eventually be opened for traffic by 2020, the engineers are still battling the rivulet in the tunnel, which is a tributary of Beas and tunnel is crossing under it, leading to leakages!

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Construction of Rohtang tunnel, one of the world's most challenging motorable projects at 3,000 metres above sea level and which will provide an all-season connectivity to the landlocked Lahaul Valley from here in Himachal Pradesh, may be completed by 2020.

The most ambitious and expensive undertaking of its kind, the excavation of the 8.8-km long horseshoe shaped tunnel under the 3,978 metres Rohtang Pass in the Himalayas was completed last October. Now civil engineering work is on.


However, a geological surprise in the form of a rivulet that sprung up in 2012 during the tunnel digging is posing a challenge. Its torrential inflow is emerging into the tunnel.

"As per the current pace of work, most likely we will complete all civil engineering work by December 2019," an engineer involved in the tunnel construction told IANS.

He said electrical and ventilation works were also in progress simultaneously. "In all probabilities, the tunnel will be made operational by May-June 2020."

The project is being built by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), a wing of the Defence Ministry, in collaboration with Afcons, a joint venture with Strabag AG.

The Rs 1,495-crore tunnel's foundation stone was laid by United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi on June 28, 2010 in the picturesque Solang Valley near here.

Official sources said the tunnel had missed its February 2015 deadline owing to tough geographical conditions in the Himalayas along with harsh climatic conditions, besides a limited working season of six months in the tunnel's north portal.

Even the project is going to miss its second deadline 2019, admitted the engineer.

The tunnel, whose both ends can be accessed after negotiating 20 landslide and snow avalanche zones, is located at altitudes ranging above 3,000 metres and lies beneath the snow covered Rohtang Pass, whose 70 per cent of the top remains under snow even during summer.

But the delay of almost five years will face a cost overrun of Rs 2,000-2,500 crore.

Taming the glacial-fed Seri rivulet is still a challenge for the engineers.

It's a tributary of the Beas river and the tunnel alignment is crossing beneath the rivulet.

"Earlier, we were encountering the Seri rivulet's impact in 562 metre area. Now, we have managed to reduce its impact to just 30 metres. Very soon we will manage to control its entire flow and seepage inside the tunnel," said another engineer.

Situated in the Pir Panjal ranges, the Rohtang Pass highway tunnel will provide ample room for two-way traffic and is designed to cater to a maximum vehicular speed of 80 km per hour.

Upon completion, it will also be a boon for the cold deserts of Lahaul Valley, where over 20,000 people remain cut off from the rest of the country in winter owing to the closure of the Rohtang Pass.

Besides reducing road distance by approximately 46 km and saving travel time of five hours between Manali and Keylong, headquarters of Lahaul-Spiti, the tunnel has the capacity to ply 3,000 vehicles per day under any weather condition.

The completion of the Rohtang tunnel is a key element in the Defence Ministry's attempts to make the entire 475 km-long Manali-Keylong-Leh highway, used by the armed forces to reach forward areas in Ladakh bordering China and Pakistan, motorable round the year, said officials.

The strategic importance of the Manali-Leh link was realised by the Indian government almost a decade ago when Pakistan tried to cut off the Srinagar-Leh road during the Kargil conflict, in a bid to restrict road access to Ladakh.

Currently, the movement of armed forces to the forward areas in Ladakh from Manali side, which doesn't fall in the firing range of Pakistan forces, is feasible only from June to mid-December.
 

Yogesh Sarkar

Administrator
So the new deadline for the Rohtang Tunnel to be opened for vehicular traffic is November 2019. Though I have a feeling, it might just get pushed off even further.

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The strategically important 8.8-km Rohtang tunnel will be thrown open for vehicular traffic in November 2019. It will connect the people of the tribal district of Lahaul-Spiti with the rest of the state via the all-weather road.

This was stated by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Friday after he visited the Rohtang tunnel from south portal (Dhundhi side) to north portal at Sissu to review the construction progress of the tunnel by the BRO. He was accompanied by senior BRO officers and Strabag AG Afcons JV Company, which is executing this ambitious project of national importance.

The Chief Minister stated that when completed, the tunnel was bound to transform the economy of landlocked Lahaul-Spiti district by providing all-weather connectivity with the rest of the state. It will give impetus to tourism sector in this tribal district.

People of the Lahaul valley led by Agriculture and Information Technology Minister Ram Lal Markanda welcomed the Chief Minister in traditional manner on the other side of the tunnel at Sissu.

“The foundation stone of this ambitious project was also laid by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was keen that this project was dedicated to the nation at the earliest”, he remarked.

He said the cost of this tunnel project was Rs 4,083 crore and the biggest hindrance in construction of this tunnel was managing of Seri Nallah in between the tunnel”, he added.

The Chief Minister said the tunnel was of strategic importance, besides being a scientific marvel. On completion, it would attract tourists from all over the world. He said three more tunnels were proposed in the area at Baralacha, La Chungla and Tangla La, which would reduce the distance between Manali and Leh by 100 km.
“The state government will make efforts to associate the Rohtang tunnel with tourism. This will provide employment and self- employment opportunities to the youth of the area”, he added.

He said the state government had succeeded in getting development projects worth Rs 6,000 crore approved from the Central Government. Impetus was being given to development of tribal areas and welfare of people residing in these areas.

He announced the construction of the Yangla bridge at the earliest. He said for the first time, the tribal areas of the state were being covered under the JICA project. Earlier, the Chief Minister visited the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment (SASE) at Manali. Later, he inspected the Manali helipad and discussed with senior officials the scope for further expansion of the helipad from the tourism point of view.

Source: ToI
 

Yogesh Sarkar

Administrator
MoD has decided to open Rohtang Tunnel for 2 days a week, for the Lahaul residents. As of now, even the approach road to the tunnel is blocked with snow. Therefore, Lahaul residents will only be able to use the tunnel, once the snow is cleared.

Elections are scheduled in Himachal on May 19 and authorities will be working to clear the Rohtang Pass before that. However, Rohtang Tunnel is expected to play a crucial role in getting Lahaul ready for elections.
 
Rothang tunnel project Snowfall Report:
December 2018 to March 2019 - 41 feet snowfall.
Current snow accumulation on the ground is 10 feet approx.

There were many avalanches too till date and many will come till April.
 

rameshtahlan

Super User
Great progress.
My dream to drive in winters to spend two or three nights in Keylong will finally come true in 2020 hopefully if not 2021.
The drive on the other side, the road along the river to Keylong is to die for.
I will probably take a full day after i come out the other side, to reach Keylong, cause i will probably stop even Km and click

Happy Landings.
 

Yogesh Sarkar

Administrator
Great progress.
My dream to drive in winters to spend two or three nights in Keylong will finally come true in 2020 hopefully if not 2021.
The drive on the other side, the road along the river to Keylong is to die for.
I will probably take a full day after i come out the other side, to reach Keylong, cause i will probably stop even Km and click

Happy Landings.
But the real question is, whether the administration would be able to keep roads in Lahaul Valley open, if snowfall is as good as this year?
 

rameshtahlan

Super User
But the real question is, whether the administration would be able to keep roads in Lahaul Valley open, if snowfall is as good as this year?
Yes, that will be a big question,
However, if you see the past years, when Rohtang Pass opens in May or Jun,
there is no snow on the roads beyond Rohtang and up to Keylong, even the mountain slopes have almost no snow.
It is my assessment that in the month of April, the road other side of Rohtang will not have snow,
but there will still be lots of snow on the mountains sides.
that is when i would cut across the tunnel,
but i will try a trip in March end also when administration says road from tunnel to Keylong is open.
it will be a trip with making.
 
Himachal Pradesh › Administration Gave Permission For Rohtang Tunnel Construction Work

अटल टनल रोहतांग का निर्माण करने के लिए दी मंजूरी

मनु शर्मा, अमर उजाला नेटवर्क, मनाली (कुल्लू) Updated Fri, 03 Apr 2020 02:59 PM IST



रोहतांग सुरंग (फाइल फोटो)


रोहतांग सुरंग (फाइल फोटो) - फोटो : अमर उजाला


सामरिक दृष्टि से महत्वपूर्ण अटल टनल का कार्य शुरू करने को मंजूरी मिल गई है। हिमाचल में लॉकडाउन और कर्फ्यू के चलते अटल टनल का काम बंद हो गया था। इससे सुरंग का निर्माण समय पर पूरा नहीं होने की चिंता बढ़ गई थी। ऐसे में अटल टनल के मुख्य अभियंता केपी पुरुषोत्तम ने उपायुक्त कुल्लू से टनल का कार्य शुरू करने की मंजूरी मांगी थी।

वीरवार को जिला प्रशासन ने शर्तों के साथ टनल निर्माण को मंजूरी दी है। परियोजना प्रबंधन को कोविड-19 के लिए बरतने वाले नियमों का पालन करने के भी सख्त निर्देश दिए हैं। प्रशासन ने कहा है कि परियोजना प्रबंधन को सुरक्षित और सैनिटाइजर सुविधा अधिकारियों और कर्मचारियों को देनी होगी। इस दौरान यातायात के लिए उपयुक्त होने वाले वाहनों को दिन में दो बार सैनिटाइज करना होगा।

कोविड-19 के तहत टनल का निर्माण उपयुक्त एक मीटर की दूरी पर करना होगा। निर्माण में लगे कर्मचारियों, अधिकारियों और टेक्निकल स्टाफ की रोजाना स्वास्थ्य जांच करनी होगी। उल्लेखनीय है कि टनल निर्माण में लगे इंजीनियर और श्रमिक अधिकतर विदेशी हैं। तुर्की, फ्रांस तथा ऑस्ट्रेलिया सहित कई अन्य देशों के इंजीनियर अनेकों कंपनियों में कार्यरत हैं।

इसके अलावा सैकड़ों की संख्या में नेपाली और प्रवासी श्रमिक कार्य कर रहे हैं। मनाली-लेह मार्ग में बन रही 8.8 किमी लंबी अटल टनल को इसी वर्ष जुलाई-अगस्त तक पूरा करने का लक्ष्य रखा है। उधर, अटल टनल के मुख्य अभियंता केपी पुरुषोत्तम ने कहा कि जिला प्रशासन से सुंरग के निर्माण की मंजूरी मांगी थी। प्रशासन ने वीरवार को कुछ शर्तों के साथ अटल टनल के निर्माण की मंजूरी दे दी।

अटल टनल रोहतांग का निर्माण करने के लिए दी मंजूरी
 
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