After a decade of digging more than 3,000 meters beneath the Himalayas, India has opened a strategic 9-kilometer-long tunnel that will bypass the snow-covered mountain passes in winter, cutting 46 kilometers off the journey to Ladakh, where Chinese and Indian troops are facing off.
The Atal tunnel will allow India to rapidly deploy troops and equipment to the Ladakh region. By crossing the India-China border, the icy desert of Ladakh in northern India has become a flashpoint as India and China spar over their disputed border.
World’s Longest High Altitude Tunnel to Ladakh Completed
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the tunnel on Oct. 4, said, “Taking care of the needs of those who are defending our country is one of the top priorities of our government.”
The high-altitude tunnel, the world’s longest, is part of India’s rush to build a road network in challenging mountainous terrain, a plan to improve connectivity along India’s Himalayan border with China, much of which remains contested.
According to analysts, the rapid construction of border infrastructure has also contributed to heightened tensions with Beijing, while the worst military confrontation between the two Asian rivals in decades has dragged on for a sixth month.
While many projects such as the Atal tunnel will take years to complete, India is now redoubling its efforts to accelerate the construction of other border roads, bridges, and high-altitude airstrips.
The challenge for India is that they are trying to close the gap with China’s road network and helipads, and have year-round access to remote areas like Ladakh. In Ladakh, military supplies must be flown in during the winter months, when heavy snow covers critical roads.
We are doing our best to develop our border infrastructure,” Modi said at the completion ceremony. Our country has yet to see roads, bridges and tunnels on this scale.”
Scholars: Strengthen border infrastructure to wrestle back India’s disadvantage
Experts have long urged India to strengthen its border infrastructure, noting that in the event of an all-out conflict, the rapid mobility of troops and military equipment can play a critical role. Since India and China fought a brief war in 1962, they have had several confrontations along the border.
“The Sino-Indian military balance has always been skewed in favor of China having the advantage, and if we want to regain that disadvantage, one of the ways to do that is to get our infrastructure right,” Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, a distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, a New Delhi-based research institute, noted. “Otherwise, we would not be able to bring our troops and equipment to the border for rapid response. China, on the other hand, can maintain troops there for a long time.”
Just about 250 kilometers west of the area near Ladakh where Indian and Chinese troops are facing off, engineers are blasting up the mountainside and drilling into the rocks near the village of Chilling to speed up work on another road that will be a key winter gateway to the Himalayan desert and is expected to be completed within three years. Indian officials say the goal is to complete construction of more than 60 major roads by 2022.
Last year, India opened another major road, the Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi road, which winds through the mountains and connects to a strategic airstrip about 5,000 meters from the Chinese border in Ladakh.
Beijing Opposes India’s Border Infrastructure
At the heart of the tensions between India and China are the differing interpretations of the border, and Beijing’s opposition to New Delhi’s rapid construction in the Himalayas.
Days before the Indian Prime Minister inaugurated the new tunnel, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said, “China does not recognize the so-called “Ladakh UT” illegally established by India, and opposes the construction of infrastructure in the disputed border area for the purpose of military control. “
Indian Army Prepares for Winter to Remain on Disputed Border
India, however, points out that the construction work is being done on their side of the border. India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh told parliament last month that New Delhi is doubling its infrastructure spending along India’s border with China, noting that Beijing has been building infrastructure in remote mountainous areas for decades.
The current stalemate underscores India’s vulnerability – months of military and diplomatic talks have yet to produce an agreement on disengagement, and neither side has backed down. And while negotiations continue, troops that normally retreat with the cold weather are preparing to stay on the border this winter.
Rajagopalan noted, “I don’t think India has much of a choice, so we’ve been stepping up our winter deployments. The scholar is increasingly concerned about China’s increasing “assertiveness and aggressiveness,” both in the South China Sea and in the Himalayas.
India has undertaken one of the largest military logistics operations in recent years to equip its troops for deployment in the uncomfortably high altitudes of Ladakh. Before the onset of winter, large transport planes helped deliver ammunition and other assorted supplies, including food, tents, heaters, winter clothing, and shoes.
The Indian Army is extremely well prepared for mountain warfare,” said retired Brigadier General Rakesh Dhir, who was principal of the High Altitude Warfare School in Kashmir, India, which trains soldiers to fight in the mountains. Operating on the summit of an alpine peak under the tremendous challenges of sub-zero temperatures and low oxygen levels. Adapting to the stationing environment, high-altitude clothing and supplies are critical at this altitude,” said Dill. If these conditions are met, the Indian army will have no problem at all.”
And that is exactly what India hopes to achieve as it strengthens its border infrastructure. While some, like the Atal Tunnel, are already open, it will take time to complete the construction of other mountain roads and bridges. But India hopes that they will be able to significantly increase their ability to protect a border that has turned into a potentially conflict-prone area.
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