AMN

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has virtually inaugurated and dedicated as many as 44 different bridges of Border Roads Organisation across the country, today. Out of the 44 projects eight are in Ladakh region at various locations. These new bridges are located in Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.

Eight bridges in Ladakh, that were built at a cost of 45 Crore are on four strategically important roads close to Line of Control on West and Line of Actual Control on East in Ladakh region.

Speaking on the occasion, Rajnath Singh said the bridges built in a record time are not just strategically important but also key in socio economic Development of Ladakh region.

Referring to the situation along India’s borders with Pakistan and China, Rajnath Singh said, You are well aware of the situation created along our northern and eastern borders. First Pakistan, and now also by China, as if a border dispute is being created under a mission. We have a border of about 7,000 km with these countries, where the tension remains.

The Defence Minister said, under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is not only facing these crises strongly, but is also bringing major and historical changes in all the areas.

Underlining the importance of infrastructure development for the country’s security, the defence minister said, Our armed forces personnel are deployed in large numbers in areas where transport is not available throughout the year, he said, noting improvement in border infrastructure will significantly help armed forces.

Complementing Border Roads Organisation efforts Rajnath Singh said that over 2,200 kilometers of roads have been cut by the BRO during the last two years, using the latest technologies, and state-of-the-art equipment. Also, surfacing was carried out on about 4200 km of roads.

The bridges varying from 24 to 80 meters span are at different altitudes in Ladakh region. Three bridges are on ZojiLa- Kargil- Leh, two are on Khalsar-Sasoma road, and one each on Sanku-Kunore-Sapila-Mulbek road, Nimmu-Padam – Darcha road and Durbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie at Line of Actual Control.

Nimmu Padam Darcha is developed as an alternative axis to Leh from Manali through Zanskar. This is a strategically deceptive road avoiding any enemy observation of movement.

These bridges are built by Ladakh located BRO projects Vijayak and Himank.

Along with strategic requirements, these bridges and roads built by BRO are key in socio economic growth of Ladakh region and all weather connectivity for the people.