Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation the strategic Sela Tunnel project virtually at an event held in Itanagar on March 9. The foundation stone of the tunnel was laid earlier by him on February 09, 2019, and the construction commenced on April 1 of the same year.
The tunnel project was completed in just five years, overcoming challenges in the form of difficult terrain and adverse weather conditions. The tunnel has been constructed by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) at an altitude of 13,000 feet on the road connecting Tezpur, Assam to Tawang in the West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh.
Built at a total cost of Rs 825 crore, the tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity to Tawang across Sela Pass on the Balipara-Chariduar-Tawang Road, boosting the preparedness of the armed forces and augmenting the socio-economic development of the border region.
In his address after the dedication of the project at the event Viksit Bharat Viksit North East, Prime Minister Modi voiced the government’s ‘unwavering commitment’ to the development of the Northeast region. He said the Sela Tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity and improve the ease of travel for the people of Tawang. Work on many such tunnels is going on in the northeast region, he added.
PM Modi said on March 9, that it would have taken Congress 20 years to accomplish what his Government did in the last five years for the development of the Northeastern States. “Congress would have taken 20 years to do what we (BJP) have done in the last five years in the Northeast,’ PM Modi said shortly in his address after inaugurating multiple development projects in the northeastern states.
Boosting the infrastructure push in the northeastern states ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the PM said, “From Independence till 2014, around 10,000 km of National Highway were constructed in the Northeast…However, in the last 10 years, more than 6,000 km of National Highway have been constructed in the Northeast. I completed the work of seven decades in just one…”.
“After 2014, a 2000-km new railway line was laid in the north-east. A lot of work has been done in the power sector. Today, work has started on the Dibang multi-purpose hydropower project in Arunachal and the solar power project in Tripura,” PM Modi said.
“Dibang Dam is going to be the highest dam in the country,” PM Modi said. PM Modi also said that the development of the North-East was part of the aim to become a developed nation.
“Our vision for the development of the North-East has been Ashtalakshmi. Our North East is going to become a strong link in India’s trade, tourism and other relations with South Asia and East Asia. The national celebration of India from a developed state to a developed one is continuing at a fast pace across the country. Today I have got the opportunity to participate together with all the states of the North-East in this celebration of the developed North-East” the PM said.
Prime Minister Modi also criticised the neglect towards border villages by previous regimes at the Centre. He reiterated his style of working as per the needs of the nation and not for electoral considerations.
He promised the defence personnel that he would come to meet them at this engineering marvel in his next term.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu and the Union Minister for Earth Sciences Kiren Rijiju were among the dignitaries present during the inauguration ceremony. The Sela Tunnel has been constructed using the new Austrian Tunnelling Method and incorporates safety features of the highest standards.
The project will not only provide a faster and more efficient transport route in the region but is of strategic importance to the country. The BRO has always been at the forefront of the development of the border areas.
In the last three years, the BRO has completed a record 330 infrastructure projects constructed at the cost of Rs 8,737 crore.
From the same event held in Itanagar, the Prime Minister, among others, inaugurated and dedicated to the nation and laid the foundation stone for multiple development projects worth about Rs 55,600 crores in Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh.
Earlier today, laying the foundation stone for a bouquet of development projects for the Northeast in the state capital, Itanagar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the region, once ignored, was fast emerging as a strong and a thriving corridor for trade with South Asia and East Asia.
At an event which was also attended by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, PM Modi laid out his vision for the development of the Northeast states, also known as the ‘Seven Sisters’, saying, “We are working for the development and progress of the Northeast in line with our vision of ‘Ashta Lakshmi’. The Northeast is emerging as a strong corridor for harnessing trade and tourism ties with our partners in South Asia and East Asia.”
(with inputs from ANI)
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