On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched projects valued at ₹55,600 crore in the Northeast, including the crucial Sela tunnel, which would connect Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh, to the rest of the country through all weather conditions. The total length of this project including the tunnel will be around 12 km.
At an estimated cost of ₹825 crore, the Sela tunnel is a feat of engineering. A statement stated that it will offer all-weather access to Tawang over the Sela pass on the Balipara-Chariduar-Tawang Road in Arunachal Pradesh.
On February 9, 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the project’s foundation stone.
It will not only give the area a quicker and more effective transit route, but its location close to China’s border makes it strategically significant for the nation as well.
Additionally, the tunnel will shorten the time taken for travelling from Tezpur to Tawang by more than an hour. According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s office the travellers would be able to bypass the treacherous Sela peak, which is 13,700 feet high and covered in snow. One of India’s clear disadvantages over China along the Northeast frontier was the absence of motorable roads and rail connections in Arunachal Pradesh. Furthermore, China gained a strategic edge by constructing access roads and other infrastructure all the way to the Indian border.
