Banihal Qazigund Tunnel: Why in the news?
Traffic congestion that was often seen on the existing Banihal pass on the 270 kilometre long Jammu Srinagar Highway affected the movement on it. Banihal Qazigund tunnel is being constructed on NH44 as an alternative to the troubled route as it will be an all weather tunnel. It would soon be opened for the public use. Prime Minister Narendra Modi would go to inaugurate it.
Need of Banihal Qazigund Tunnel:
The 60 kilometer route between the Jawahar Tunnel and Shaitani Nala was especially troublesome in winters due to its average elevation of almost 7200 feet. Many accidents were encountered at this place due to frequent snowfall and landslides.
The construction on this site thus became very difficult. To bypass this route, the Banihal QaziGund Tunnel has been constructed by the Government which will be soon opened for the public in coming weeks.
Why was the process delayed?
The tunnel would reduce the distance between Banihal and Qazigund by 16 kilometers. The construction of the tunnel began in the year 2011.
The average elevation of this newly constructed tunnel is less than the previous one and measures 5870 feet.
The cost of building is estimated to be 2100 crore rupees and it would be 8.5 kilometres long only.
In 2016, there was the Burhan Vani incident which delayed the project followed by removal of Article 370 by 2019 and lockdown due to covid by 2020.
Features of the Tunnel:
- The tunnel is constructed using the New Austrian tunneling method or technology.
- These were built on the Build Operate and Transfer base system.
- It is equipped with a state io the art exhaust exhaust system so that it can remove gas particles and bring some fresh air
- There are as many as 123 jet fans, 234 CCTV cameras and firefighting systems. This is on both sides of the tunnel.
- There are corridors included within the tubes within 500 metres inside the tunnels. This can be used as an exit in case of emergencies.
- The tunnel cuts across the Pir Panjal mountain range and would be helpful to reduce the travel distance by 16 km on the highway.
- The work was taken up in 2011 by the Andhra Pradesh based Engineering company called Navyug Engineering Company.
Latest Updates:
As per the Traffic police of Jammu and Kashmir, almost hundred vehicles would be allowed from Banihal towards Qazigund, DSP Traffic National Highway, Shamsher Singh briefed the media.
Chief Manager of Navyug Engineering Company, Muneeb Ahmad Tak also informed that “the trial run which was originally scheduled for an hour from 4-5 pm, has now been extended till 6 pm.”
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