Indian PM opens strategic tunnel to China border zones

With opening of tunnel here, connectivity will significantly improve, says Modi

By AFP
January 14, 2025
A woman walks past a billboard in Srinagar on January 13, 2025, advertising the scheduled inauguration of the Z-Morh road tunnel by India´s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) in Sonamarg. —AFP
A woman walks past a billboard in Srinagar on January 13, 2025, advertising the scheduled inauguration of the Z-Morh road tunnel by India´s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (right) in Sonamarg. —AFP

HELD SRINAGAR: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a strategic Himalayan road tunnel on Monday, pushing all-weather access northwards towards contested high-altitude border zones with rivals China and Pakistan.

The Z-Morh or Sonmarg tunnel, stretching 6.4 kilometres (four miles) beneath a treacherous mountain pass cut off by snow for between four to six months a year, is part of a wider infrastructure drive in border zones.

It helps connect Indian-Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJ&K) with Ladakh, acting as a stepping stone in opening the Srinagar-Leh Highway all year round to allow rapid deployment of military supplies.

“With the opening of the tunnel here, connectivity will significantly improve,” Modi said, wrapped in a jacket from the freezing cold after cutting the ribbon on the $313 million project that has taken a decade to construct.Another tunnel on the same route, the 13-kilometre (eight-mile) long Zojila tunnel, is more than halfway completed and slated to open in 2026, according to the information ministry.