Preserve ecology at Rohtang: Sonia

SOLANG - Congress president Sonia Gandhi Monday asked the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to protect the Himalayan ecology while constructing the nearly nine-km long Rohtang tunnel in Himachal Pradesh.

“Expanding roads, constructing tunnels and building bridges are important, but the BRO need ensure that these activities do not damage the ecology,” Gandhi said after inaugurating the work of the tunnel that is coming up at an altitude of over 13,000 feet in the Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas.

“This (preserving the ecology) will only secure the lives of the future generations in the region. I hope the BRO will keep that in mind while carrying out the construction work,” she said, addressing a gathering here after the inauguration ceremony.

“A little while ago, I laid the foundation stone for the Rohtang tunnel. It is both a happy and a historic occasion,” she said.

The tunnel is being constructed under the supervision of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), the Indian Army’s infrastructure building wing. Strabag-Afcons, a joint venture between India’s Afcons Infrastructure Ltd and Strabag SE of Austria, world’s fourth largest construction company has bagged the contract for the work that is expected to take 63 months for completion.