Arunachal Pradesh: PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate strategic Sela Tunnel on March 9

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the strategically important Sela Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh’s West Kameng district and dedicate it to the nation on March 9, Arunachal Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein informed.

The Sela Tunnel will give a big boost to the Army in terms of enhancing the strategic and operational capabilities to Tawang district, bordering China and other forward areas.

Located at over 13,000 feet above the sea level, once completed, the tunnel will go a long way in providing all-weather connectivity to the Line of Actual Control with China. It will be the world’s longest bilane tunnel at that height.

The tunnel constructed by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), is being excavated below the 4,200-metre Sela Pass, which is often closed due to snowfall and landslides.

𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗮 𝗧𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹:

The Sela Tunnel project involves two main tunnels – an escape tunnel and a link road. The first tunnel, which is 993 metres long, cuts through a longitudinal ridge, and after emerging, a second tunnel, 1,591 metres long, runs through the main Sela-Chabrela ridge.

The two tunnels together bypass the Sela Pass and maintain an elevation of 3000 metre. There is an escape tunnel that runs parallel to the 1591-metre tunnel. It may be mentioned here that the escape tunnel has been constructed to facilitate rescue work if an emergency situation arises. The escape tunnel is connected to the main tunnel by six Cross-passages.

The project also involves the construction of an approach road of 7.2 km to Tunnel 1, which takes off from BCT Road, and a link road of 1.2 km that connects Tunnel 1 to Tunnel 2. The total length of the project, including the tunnels, the approach, and the link roads, will be around 12 km.

The project also includes state-of-the-art control rooms to control all the traffic and remotely control all the other essential services in the tunnels with the help of SCADA, a firefighting system, ventilation facilities, a lighting system, and a communication system. The road and the tunnels are constructed for two-way traffic.

𝗢𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗶𝗻:

All weather connectivity to Tawang and forward areas.

Reduction in more than one hour of travelling time from Tezpur to Tawang.

Travellers would be able to avoid the dangerous snow covered Sela top at a height of 13,700 feet.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴?
The idea of constructing a tunnel below the Sela Pass was first proposed in 2008 by then-Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu. The project was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security in 2018, and the foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2019.