Rajnath Singh Inaugurates 75 Border Areas Projects In Different States & UTs

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh dedicated 75 infrastructure projects to the nation on Thursday. The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) projects were constructed in six states and two union territories (UTs). Singh inaugurated these projects at a ceremony held at the D-S-DBO road in Ladakh.

According to the defence ministry statement, the BRO built these strategically critical projects at a total cost of 2,180 crores in record time, with several of them completed in a single working season utilising cutting-edge technology.

There are 45 bridges, 27 highways, two helipads and one carbon-neutral habitat among the 75 projects.

"Twenty of these projects are in Jammu and Kashmir, 18 in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, five in Uttarakhand and 14 in other border states of Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan," according to the statement. 

Rajnath Singh commended BRO's tenacity and perseverance in accomplishing the accomplishment despite adverse weather circumstances, saying the projects will strengthen the country's defence preparedness and assure the economic development of border districts.

The event's main attraction was the onsite opening of the 120-metre-long Class 70 Shyok Setu on D-S-DBO Road at an elevation of 14,000 metres. The bridge will be strategically important since it will facilitate logistical transportation to the armed forces.

Singh reaffirmed the government's commitment to ensuring the progress of remote areas to meet the country's security needs, emphasising that infrastructure development, along with the valour of the Armed Forces, was the primary reason that India was able to effectively deal with the recent situation in the northern sector.

He described the new 75 projects as a pillar to that resolve, stating that these bridges, roads and helipads will facilitate military and civil mobility in remote areas of the country's western, northern and north-eastern regions, forming part of the development chain.

The minister highlighted connectivity with border areas as one of the government's priority areas for the nation's overall growth.

"One of the main causes of the growth of terrorism in Kashmir was a lack of infrastructure development for decades after independence. These internal squabbles resulted in a considerable drop in tourist footfall, which hit Ladakh as well as the entire country. The region is now enjoying a fresh dawn of peace and growth as a result of the government's efforts. Our goal is to continue developing all of the country's states and UTs. Soon, all remote locations will be linked to the rest of the country and we will all work together to propel the country to new heights of progress. BRO has a crucial role in achieving this objective," Rajnath Singh said.

Singh also set the groundwork for Chandigarh's Himank Air Despatch Complex and the BRO Museum in Leh.