As the clashes with PLA on the rise, India plans to build 1,700-km highway near China border

The two-lane highway will run close to the India-Tibet-China-Myanmar border and it will be as close to 20 km from the international border in some parts.

New Delhi, Dec 19: As the clashes between China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the Indian Army in the borders are on the rise, the Indian government has decided to construct a 1,748-km highway for seamless connectivity.

The centre is coming up with a two-lane road, called as 'Frontier Highway, that will run close to the India-Tibet-China-Myanmar border and it will be as close to 20 km from the international border in some parts, a daily reported. The project assumes huge strategic significance as it helps defence forces of easy movement as well as equipment to the border areas.

"Nearly 800 km of the corridor will be greenfield as there is no existing road on these stretches. There will be some bridges and tunnels as well. We have chalked out the plan to complete the sanctioning of all works in 2024-25 and usually, it takes around two years to complete construction. Different packages will get completed as we progress while the entire project is expected for completion by 2026-27," the daily quoted an official as saying.

It has to be noted that China too is building infrastructure on its side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The road is designated as NH-913 and the construction starts from Bomdila. The highway will go via Nafra, Huri and Monigong, the closest point on the India-Tibet border. Also, Jido and Chenquenty, the points closest to the China border, will also be covered by the highway. It will end at Vijaynagar, near India-Myanmar border. The 1,748-km highway project is divided into nine packages.

Union Transport Minister had claimed that the project costs around Rs 27,000 crore, but the Centre is looking for ways to bring down the cost, the report said.

In 2016, the project 'empowered committee on border infrastructure' had recommended conducting surveys and preparing reports on the border areas in consultation with the defence ministry, state governments and the Department of Border Management. Two years later, the Union Government notified the corridor in Arunachal Pradesh as a National Highway (NH). "Once a road is notified as NH, the responsibility comes to the road transport ministry to build it. There is also a proposal to develop inter-corridors in Arunachal Pradesh connecting the frontier highway," the report said citing a source.

The Indian and Chinese troops have been locked in a tense border standoff in eastern Ladakh since May 5, 2020, when a violent clash between the two sides erupted in the Pangong lake area. China has also been building bridges and constructing other infrastructure such as roads and residential units in the border areas with India.

On December 9, armed with spiked clubs, over 200 soldiers of the Chinese PLA clashed with the Indian soldiers at Yangtse in Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh.

With inputs from agencies