After Rohtang, focus shifts to Shinku La tunnel between Ladakh and Lahaul

CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana interesting... learned something new today. Thanks for the share.
..."Officials admit with the completion of the Rohtang Pass tunnel, the focus of the Indian government now shifts towards the construction of the Shinku La tunnel owing to the strategic significance of the third route to Ladakh, a shorter one.

Currently, the troop movement towards Ladakh is by two routes -- the 434-km Srinagar-Kargil-Leh via Zojila Pass and the 475-km Manali-Leh that passes through the Rohtang Pass. But they remain cut off from the rest of the country for over six months due to heavy snowfall.

For Kargil, the troop movement from Manali is via Leh that is 700-km long.

With the construction of the Darcha-Nimmu-Padum road through the Shinku La tunnel, the distance between Manali and Kargil will be reduced to 522 km.

Officials admit the construction of the Shinku La tunnel alone is more viable in comparison to construction of at least tunnels beneath the Baralacha (16,020 feet), Lachlungla (16,620 feet) and Tanglangla (17,480 feet) passes that lie on the operational Manali-Leh link.

On completion of the Shinku La tunnel, the Manali-Kargil highway will remain open throughout the year, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a statement last week.

The strategic importance of the Manali-Leh link was realised by the government when Pakistan tried to cut off the Srinagar-Leh road during the 1999 Kargil conflict, in a bid to restrict road access to Ladakh.

However, the movement of armed forces to the forward areas in Ladakh from Manali side, that doesn't fall in the firing range of Pakistan forces, is feasible only from June to mid-December.

With a round-the-year road link to tribal areas, the region will witness a huge influx of tourists not only for nature-based activities but also for visiting ancient Buddhist monasteries, admit state officials."