The Delhi-Jammu-Srinagar highway will contribute to a four-fold rise in the footfall of tourists in Kashmir, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said Tuesday. Gadkari, who inspected the Banihal-Qazigund tunnel and other projects in the union territory, said that upon their completion the travel time between from Delhi to Srinagar will be just 8 hours.
Key projects part of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway:
The 924-metre-long Banihal-Qazigund tunnel, being constructed to avoid a 3km landslide-prone region in Ramban district of Jammu, is part of the ongoing four-laning of the 270-km Jammu-Srinagar national highway – the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country.
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Joined by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Union ministers Jitendra Singh and Gen VK Singh, Gadkari also conducted a breakthrough of Sita Rama Passi Maroog via virtual mode through a controlled blast in the tunnel. He said this road was expected to be completed in two years.
Road projects worth ₹1.25 lakh crore are underway in the valley, Gadkari told the reporters. Three key roads are being constructed between Jammu and Srinagar, he added. The completion of these projects will also ensure a six hours travel time from Delhi to Katra – the base camp of the cave shrine of Mata Vaishnodevi. “Presently the distance from Delhi to Katra is 727 km, this expressway will reduce the distance by 58 km,” Gadkari noted.
“…One of five tunnels with a length of 45 kilometres has been inaugurated today. The other three tunnels will be open by next year. One tunnel given to TATA will take some time for completion,” the minister for road, highways and transport said.
The work on the Jammu Srinagar national highway began in 2011 and includes a number of small and major tunnels, bridges and flyovers and is likely to be completed by the next year.
