BANIHAL : Undeterred by challenges it faced while executing two big-ticket infra projects here, Hindustan Construction Company will bid for such upcoming works in this region like the 13-km Arpinchala-Dharam underground railway project.
The Mumbai-based firm has recently executed the 11-km long Pir Panjal railway tunnel, the third longest in the world, and also the Uri-II hydro power project in Jammu and Kashmir.
The company is set to bid for the 13-km long Arpinchala- Dharam project as well, the official said.
“The Banihal-Qazigund railway tunnel, the longest in the country, was awarded to us in 2005. The track is now ready for the Railways. The amount of challenges we had to face was mind-boggling.
“However, that does not deter us from bidding for more projects and we are, in fact, working on the same route that will connect between Dharam-Sumbar. We will bid for more projects on the same track in the coming days,” said tunnel’s project manager Sharanappa Yalal.
Sources said that government has already come out with a tender inviting developers to bid for the Arpinchala to Dharam project and HCC is making preparations to bid for it.
HCC had bagged the Pir Panjal tunnel project from IRCON, a construction subsidiary of the Railways, in 2005. Though the initial cost of the project was Rs 400 crore, it went up to Rs 800 crore as the scope of the project widened.
The tunnel, which connects the Bichelri valley of Banhial in Jammu with Qazigund in Kashmir, will reduce the distance between the two places to 18 km from 35 km by road.
“It will also help the economy of the two places. The tunnel will facilitate transportation during winter. During the most part of the year, the inclement weather forces closure of the road tunnel and the highway,” Yalal said.
“However, it was not easy to execute the project. Initially, we had brought two road headers from Germany for boring the tunnel. But, as we started working, we found the geologically young and unstable mountain range is not fit for traditional way of tunneling. We then brought the New Austrian Tunneling method for the first time in India,” he said.
The official said the Uri-II 240 MW hydro power project is also ready for commissioning though it has been taken out of the PM’s inauguration agenda during his two-day proposed visit here as NHPC said it had developed some technical snag.
“We have done the civil construction part of the project and the project hand over is likely to happen soon. It is up to NHPC to decide on the date of commissioning of the project,” he said.
NHPC is building the Rs 1,724 crore project at Baramulla on the river of Jhelum.
Talking about the Pir Panjal project, Yayal said: “The company faced weather problems as well. During November to June period of the year, the area remains almost inaccessible due to snow, which envelopes the arterial road causing huge problems for transporting required materials. Getting manpower, even those who are unskilled, was difficult.”
The tunnel is a part of the 345-km long Jammu Udhampur Srinagar Baramulla Railway Link, aimed at connecting Jammu to Baramulla on the northwestern part of the valley.
Trains now ply from Baramulla to Quazigund and Jammu to Udhampur on this stretch. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to inaugurate the tunnel, thereby connecting Qazigund to Banihal.
Around 90-km long stretch, between Udhampur to Banihal is to be completed to get the stretch connected by the Railways.
Meanwhile, sources said Railways is likely to tie up with state transport authority to help passengers reach out to the unlinked passage by bus at no extra cost. Passengers would be able to book tickets up to Baramulla. An announcement in this regard is likely during the tunnel’s inauguration by the Prime Minister.
HCC has executed a majority of India’s landmark infrastructure projects. Its landmark works include the Bandra Worli Sea Link, Mumbai – India’s first and longest open sea cable-stayed bridge; the Kolkata Metro, Farakka Barrage and India’s largest nuclear power plant at Kudankulam – Tamil Nadu. (AGENCIES)
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel