The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has completed construction of a 440 m long tunnel below the busy Chamba town on the Rishikesh-Dharasu road Highway (NH 94). Indian Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday lauded and congratulated the team for achieving this feat.
Gadkari took to Twitter and tweeted, “Happy to announce that our Border Roads Organisation (BRO) team has made a major breakthrough in the Chardham Project. They have successfully dug up 440 m long Tunnel below the busy Chamba town on Rishikesh-Dharasu road Highway (NH 94).”
The Minister added that the breakthrough of this tunnel will go a long way in facilitating the speedy movement of the traffic. He informed that the latest Austrian technology has been used for constructing the Chamba Tunnel.
As per the latest reports, the tunnel will be ready to handle traffic by October 2020, which is before the scheduled date of completion, i.e., January 2021. As per the BRO, the 440 m tunnel has been built at a cost of INR 88 crore.
Reportedly, this tunnel will not only facilitate speedy movement of traffic, it will also reduce congestion and distance to Chamba town. This will further ease the movement of pilgrims on Char Dham yatra, and also bring economic prosperity.
The Minister lauded the BRO officials for working under some of the very difficult terrain and situations. A top-official from the BRO added that the team started work on North Portal of this tunnel in January 2019, whereas work on South Portal could be started only after October 2019, because of stiff resistance from locals on account of safety concerns and compensation issues.
The Chamba tunnel is a horse-shoe type tunnel with 10 m carriage way width and 5.5 m vertical clearance. Gadkari also asked the BRO to ensure beautification along the highway, with green plants and other methods.