NEW DELHI: Since the times of yore, the sheer geographical challenge of the mighty Zojila pass, the fact that it cut off Ladakh from the Kashmir Valley for about 135 days from November-end to mid-April and made the Ladakh region vulnerable to potential Pakistani and Chinese incursions, has been a huge worry for India’s military establishment.
But on Saturday, the pass—loosely translated as the ‘pass of blizzards’, at 3,550 metres altitude—opened for vehicular use for the first time in its history in March, widening the window of use for the fast transporting of soldiers and military material to the susceptible Ladakh region in case of emergencies not to speak of the immense relief to the people of the region.
“The renewed focus on infrastructure development of border areas mandated requirement of keeping the closure of ZojiLa Pass to the minimum… The Pass was opened on 19 Mar 2022 and trial vehicle passed through it towards Kargil, thereby bringing much needed relief to the people of Ladakh,” said a communiqué by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO)
This year the pass was kept open till January 4, 2022, and snow clearance operations were started on February 15 before the connectivity was initially established on March 3, after which improvement of the road surface was carried out for safe passage of vehicles facilitating the availability of essential goods and supplies and also assisting in the movement of army convoys.
A recently tabled report by the parliamentary standing committee on defence had said: “Considering the prevalent situation on LAC, BRO kept the crucial Zojila axis open till 04 Jan 2022. This is the first time that the axis was kept open so long providing much-needed connectivity to the forces deployed in Ladakh. This is also the first time that the Zojila Pass has been opened in the month of February against traditional norms of Apr/May, shrinking the time of closure of pass from 4-5 months to less than 2 months.”
“In the same manner, the time of closure of pass from 4-5 months Manali-Sarchu axis was opened in a record time frame on 28th Mar in year 2021 for the first time in history. All other major passes in the Himalayas were also either kept open throughout the year or opened much ahead of schedule, thereby enabling easier logistics build-up for the troops deployed ahead.”
Besides heavy snow, the other challenges of building infrastructure at such heights are the sub-zero temperatures and oxygen-depleted air which makes work very strenuous and labourious.
In keeping with the government according primacy on border infrastructure projects of strategic importance that have been designed to facilitate movement of heavy civil and military traffic in border areas, a total of 102 infrastructure projects were declared open in 2021 including 24 bridges and three roads through e-inauguration in the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh on December 28, 2021, besides 12 roads and 63 bridges that were inaugurated in June 2021.
Notably, the BRO has also constructed the world’s highest road over Umlingla Pass in southern Ladakh, on the Chismule-Demchok road that crosses the pass at 5,800 metres. Besides enabling faster induction of forces in this sector, the road will also give a major boost to tourism and enhance the socio-economic conditions of the locals in this region.
Also Read:BRO personnel kept Kashmir-Ladakh Zojila pass open till Dec 31 this winter
