Fortifying Ladakh Defence, Cabinet Clears 4 Km-long Shinkun La Tunnel

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved a 4.1-kilometre tunnel under Shinkun La on the Manali-Darcha-Padam-Nimu axis to allow all-weather connectivity to the Union Territory and cater to the continuous supply of troops and equipment in the worst-case scenario with either of the two adversaries.

The Border Roads Organisation built a blacktop road on the Darcha-Padam-Nimu axis in 2019, but it was impassable during the winter months due to heavy snow on the 16703-foot-high Shinkun La. 

The road is critical to Ladakh's defence because it is protected from both Pakistani and Chinese long-range artillery and missile fire, as opposed to the exposed Srinagar-Drass-Kaksar-Kargil highway near the LoC and the Manali-Upshi-Leh highway near the LAC. After the Chinese PLA's belligerence on the LAC in May 2020, the Indian Army used the Darcha-Padam-Nimu route to send arms and ammunition supplies to East Ladakh.

The decision to clear the tunnel under Shinkun La makes strategic sense because, in order to achieve all-weather connectivity on the Manali-Upshi-Leh highway, the government would have to build 38 kilometres of tunnels under Baralacha La, Lachulung La, and Taglang La, all passes that reach height of over 16000 feet and are snowed in for at least five months of the year.

Although the Defence Ministry presented the proposal to the Ministry of Highways and Road Transport in 2017, the department was in favour of a 13-kilometre tunnel under Shinkun La that would connect it to the existing Darcha-Upshi-Leh highway. Given the terrain and the harsh subarctic temperatures, the proposal languished until it was handed over to the BRO in 2020, following the Chinese transgressions.

At the cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared the tunnel and approached roads on both sides. The project will cost a total of Rs1681.51 crore and will be completed by December 2025. Because the BRO has already completed road cutting and blacktopping of the approaches to Shinkun La on both sides, the government will only need to complete the 4.1 km underground pass.

The move is significant because Nimu in Ladakh is close to both Kargil and Leh, the UT's headquarters. This means that the Indian Army can deploy forces and equipment more quickly if a situation arises in the Kargil-Siachen or East Ladakh sector along the 1597 km LAC in the UT.