Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways (MORTH) Nitin Gadkari will initiate the first blasting for Zojila Tunnel on strategic Srinagar-Leh highway on Thursday.
Official sources told Greater Kashmir that the Union Minister Nitin Gadkari will initiate the first blasting for Zojila tunnel that will mark the commencement of work on Asia’s longest tunnel.
Pertinently, the Zojila pass is situated at an altitude of 11,578 feet on the Srinagar-Kargil-Leh national highway that remains closed for nearly six months due to heavy snowfall, cutting Ladakh off from the rest of the country.
The Zojila tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar and Ladakh on NH-1. It involves construction of a 14.15 Km long tunnel at an altitude of about 3000 m under Zojila pass on NH-1 connecting Srinagar and Leh through Drass and Kargil.