Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to inaugurate the much anticipated and eagerly waited ‘Atal Tunnel’ that is built on the Rohtang Pass in Himachal Pradesh on today on October 3.
It is touted to be the world’s longest and highest-altitude highway tunnel which is around 9.02 km long. It is constructed at an altitude of 3000 metres from the sea level in the Himalayan range of Pir Panjal. It will connect Manali to Lahaul-Spiti Valley and will be open throughout the year. The journey will be four to five hours long. Earlier, the connection to the valley was cut off for about six months due to heavy snowfall in the area.
Apart from this, this tunnel also gives a tactical advantage to the Indian army as they now have access to the LAC from the mainland throughout the year.
All the modern infrastructure and methods were used in order to build this all-important tunnel. The project had received a green light back in 2000 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the prime minister of the country. The foundation stone for the same was laid in 2002. However, it was in 2019 when PM Modi decided to rename the then named Rohtang Tunnel to Atal Tunnel to honour the late prime minister.
Prime Minister Modi will dedicate the tunnel to the Indian public and it will be open thereafter. From the time the news of the tunnel completion till the day of the inauguration, netizens have been beaming with pride to marvel the tunnel. They took to Twitter to express their happiness on it being constructed.
Many of the tweets consisted of photos of the tunnel with words of encouragement tweeted to Modi and the country.
अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी जी का देखा हुआ सपना आज पूरा हो रहा है। अटल टनल सम्पूर्ण हिमाचल की तरफ़ से अटल जी को श्रद्धांजलि है। आज 3 अक्तूबर को सुबह 10 बजे प्रधानमंत्री @narendramodi हिमाचल आकर टनल का उद्घाटन करेंगे।
#AtalTunnel pic.twitter.com/eiy5kWYdQH
— Pankaj Sinha (@yourpankajsinha) October 3, 2020
अटल टनल रोहतांग बनकर तैयार।
पूर्व प्रधानमंत्री, भारत रत्न स्व. श्री अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी जी का सपना हुआ साकार।#AtalTunnel pic.twitter.com/mIdLLW5ORd
— Pratik Shukla ? (@PratikShuklaon9) October 3, 2020
Thank u for this unbelievable construction which is going to bring ease for locals and travellers who prefer road ways? #AtalTunnel https://t.co/ptslaOmqRk
— Puspa Singh# Teacher #Follow if u like my tweet (@PuspaTraveller) October 3, 2020
“Congratulations to all Indians on the inauguration of the ‘Atal Tunnel’ today,” one of the users tweeted this in Hindi.
The tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity to remote border areas of Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh which otherwise remain cut-off from the rest of the country for about six months during winters. #AtalTunnel ✌??✍️? https://t.co/L7Hfkdg0KB
— Bhuneshwar Rai (@iBhuneshwarRai) October 3, 2020
After inaugurating the tunnel, Modi will be proceeding to Lahaul-Spiti Valley to attend public functions.
Source: Times Now