Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 7: Border Roads Organisation (BRO) celebrate its 55th Raising Day in the State today with great vigour and enthusiasm. The celebration kicked off with special pooja at different units followed by Sainik Sammelan Barakhana (community feast) was organised for all ranks.
Project Beacon in J&K was raised as Chief Engineer Roads (Ladakh) during the first week of May 1960 which was later redesignated as Chief Engineer Project Beacon. This is the oldest project of Border Roads Organisation initially looking after the entire J&K State. Later, projects Sampark and Himank were raised for Jammu and Ladakh regions respectively to ease out the workload of this project.
Project Himank aptly known as Mountain Tamers, is located at the highest inhabited place in the world between great Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges. It is responsible to maintain line of communication through highest motorable road to highest battlefield in the world and from highest airfield to the highest lake. Currently this project is instrumental in development of road infrastructure in Eastern Ladakh and other strategically important roads in Ladakh Sector.
Project Sampark was raised in January 1975 with its HQ at Jammu. It has an area of responsibility South of Pir Panjal covering all the border districts in Jammu region. The project has over 3000 Kms of roads (both under maintenance and construction/upgradation) and around 120 bridges.
Project Vijayak is deployed in Kargil and is instrumental in maintenance of strategically important road link of 434Km long, Srinagar-Leh National Highway from Drass to Zero Point Gumri.
BRO has been forefront in construction of Rohtang Tunnel out of a planned length of 8.80 Km of the tunnel of Manali-Leh road, 4,807 Km has been completed covering 2,245 Km from Manali side and 2,562 Km from Leh side.
With regards to road projects of BROs, 73 roads in India have been identified as strategic Indo-China border roads (ICBR), out of which 61 roads have been entrusted to Border Roads Organisation (BRO) with a length of 3410 km. Out of 61 ICBRs with BRO, 19 roads of length 625 km have been completed and connectivity has been achieved on 24 roads.
There are certain delays in execution of road projects mainly due to delay in Forest / Wildlife clearance, hard rock stretches, Limited working season, difficulties in availability of construction material, due to natural disaster such as flash flood of Leh in 2010, J&K flood in Sep 2014 and earthquake in Sikkim in 2011. Resources are diverted, delay in land acquisition & non-availability of construction material in certain sectors/areas.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel