The World Book of Records has officially certified Atal Tunnel as the ‘World’s Longest Highway Tunnel above 10,000 Feet’, Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday. The officially certification came during a landmark ceremony on 09th of February 2022, in New Delhi. World Book of Records UK, is an organisation that catalogues and verifies extraordinary records across the world with authentic certification. Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry, the Director-General of Border Roads Organisation (DGBR) received the award for the remarkable achievement of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) in constructing the engineering marvel that connects Manali to the Lahaul – Spiti Valley.
Atal Tunnel, the pride of the Nation, was dedicated to the Nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 3rd October 2020. The Atal Tunnel is also known as Rohtang Tunnel and is 9.02 km long. The strategically significant Atal Tunnel is built under the ‘Rohtang Pass’ in the eastern Pir Panjal Range of the Himalayas. It was constructed on the Leh – Manali Highway in Himachal Pradesh, under the challenging conditions of freezing temperatures in extremely difficult terrain.
Before the construction of the tunnel, the highway remained closed for six months during the winter season, thus isolating Lahaul and Spiti from the mainland. However, the construction of the tunnel has made possible all-weather connectivity on the Manali – Leh axis and the distance on Manali – Sarchu road has been reduced by 46 km, while the travel time has been reduced by four to five hours.
The tunnel bypasses most of the sites that were prone to road blockades, avalanches and traffic congestion. The tunnel is at an elevation of 3,100 meters, while the Rohtang Pass is at an elevation of 3,978 meters. The construction of this tunnel has been an extreme test of technical and engineering skills, as well as of human endurance and machine efficacy.
The tunnel has been constructed in extremely harsh and challenging terrain and weather conditions where the temperature dips to bone-chilling -25 degrees in winters. Geological fragility and natural challenges like the seepage of Seri Nala which led to the flooding of the Atal Tunnel, coupled with high overburden and excessive snowfall were some of the principal construction challenges successfully surmounted by the Border Roads Organisation.
The Border Roads Organisation worked relentlessly and stood tall on its motto ‘Connecting Places Connecting People’ by providing engineering marvels in the form of Atal Tunnel, Rohtang. The tunnel, along with offering the Armed Forces a strategic advantage by providing an alternate link to the critical Ladakh Sector, has also become a boon for the residents of Lahaul and Spiti District in Himachal Pradesh. The region and especially the Atal Tunnel has become a major tourist attraction site and is seeing an unparalleled increase in the arrival of tourists. In a little more than a year’s time, the valley and the state have witnessed growth in the socio-economic sectors.
Some key highlights of Atal Tunnel
- The project was announced on the 3rd June 2000, by the then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
- The foundation stone of the project was laid by Sonia Gandhi on 28th of June 2010, who was then the Chairperson of National Advisory Council.
- On 25th December 2019, the Rohtang tunnel was renamed as ‘Atal Tunnel’ to honour Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
- It is a horseshoe shaped, double lane single tube tunnel.
- The tunnel has an emergency route built under the main tunnel, to provide an emergency exit in case of an unforeseen situation.
- The tunnel has a telephone facility at every 150 meters, fire hydrants at 60 meters and emergency exits at 500 meters.
- Air quality sensors have been installed at each kilometer.
