On October 12, 2020 Rajnath Singh, Union Defence Minister virtually inaugurated 44 bridges, built by Border Roads Organisation (BRO) across 7 States/UTs(Union Territories) in border areas. Most of these bridges are in strategically important areas and will help armed forces to ensure quick movement of troops and weapons. He also laid the Foundation Stone for 450 meters long, ‘Nechiphu Tunnel’, a bi-lane tunnel, on the road to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.
- It is to be noted that this is the 1st time such a large number of bridges on different borders of the country were inaugurated.
He also announced that the government has sanctioned high altitude clothing to BRO engineers and workers.
Key People
Gen Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence Staff; Gen MM Naravane, Chief of Army Staff among others participated in the ceremony through video conference.
44 Bridges
The 44 bridges are of various spans ranging from 30 meters to 484 meters.
Of these 44 bridges, 10 are in Jammu and Kashmir, 8 in Ladakh, 2 in Himachal Pradesh, 4 in Punjab, 8 in Uttarakhand, 8 in Arunachal Pradesh and 4 in Sikkim.
Significance
i.The bridges provide connectivity to remote areas and are of strategic importanceÂ
ii.It has been designed to ease the movement of heavy civil & military traffic in border areas(Western, Northern and North East sectors)
iii.In accordance with the vision of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the bridges contribute to the overall economic development of remote border areas and will also help to quickly deploy the Armed Forces in strategically important areas.
Bridges in Ladakh
The 8 bridges in Ladakh, that were built at a cost of 45 Crore are on 4 strategically important roads close to Line of Control on West and Line of Actual Control on East in Ladakh region.These bridges are built by BRO projects Vijayak and Himank.
Nechiphu Tunnel
The strategically important tunnel will ensure all weather connectivity across Nechiphu Pass. It will also provide a safe and secure passage through accident prone areas.
Additional Info
i.BRO, apart from expediting road construction, has completed 28 major bridges in 2019, while 102 major bridges are being completed in 2020. Of these 54 bridges have already been completed.
ii.BRO, in order to meet immediate requirements of armed forces and people living in remote areas has also constructed more than 60 Bailey BridgesÂ
iii.Currently it is constructing major Bridges & Roads, Atal Tunnel Rohtang, Sela Tunnel etc,Â
Note– The annual budget of BRO was between Rs 3,300 Crores to Rs 4,600 Crores in 2008-2016, in 2020-21 it was over Rs 11,000 crores.
Recent Related News:
i.On September 15, 2020 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated & Laid Foundation Stone for Seven Projects related to Urban Infrastructure in the state of Bihar through video conference. The total cost of the projects is Rs 541 Crores.
Out of the 7 projects, 4 are related to water supply, two for Sewerage treatment and 1 for Riverfront
ii.On September 21, 2020 Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the Foundation Stone for Nine Highway Projects worth Rs 14, 528 Crores in Bihar through video conference. The project includes making six-lane highways, and three bridges on rivers. He also laid the foundation of ‘Har Gaon Optical Fibre Cable’ for Internet Services to connect all villages of Bihar.
Constituency:
Rajnath Singh, Union Defence minister– Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
