News: India’s tunnel infrastructure is in focus due to recent completions, operational launches, and progress in major strategic and transport tunnel projects.
About Famous Tunnels of India
Atal Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in Himachal Pradesh.
Location: It is located Beneath the Pir Panjal ranges.
Connects: It connects the Manali with Lahaul–Spiti. - Key Features:
- The 9.02 km long tunnel bypasses Rohtang Pass and enables year-round high-altitude travel under extreme Himalayan conditions.
- It is officially recognized as the World’s Longest Highway Tunnel above 10,000 feet in 2022.
Sonamarg Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in Jammu & Kashmir.
Location: It is located in the mountainous region near Sonamarg at an altitude of over 8,650 feet above sea level.
Connects: It connects Srinagar with Sonamarg and further towards Ladakh. - Key Features: The 12 km tunnel project includes a 6.4 km main tunnel, an egress tunnel, and approach roads built using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method.
Sela Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in Arunachal Pradesh.
- Location: It is located on the Tezpur–Tawang route at an altitude of about 13,000 feet.
- Connects: It connects Tezpur with Tawang.
- Key Features: The tunnel is constructed by the Border Roads Organisation using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method at a cost of ₹825 crore.
- It ensures all-weather connectivity, holds strategic importance for the Armed Forces, and supports socio-economic growth in border areas.
Banihal–Qazigund Road Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in Jammu & Kashmir.
- Location: It is located between Banihal and Qazigund.
- Connects: It connects the Jammu region with the Kashmir Valley.
- Key Features: The 8.45 km long twin-tube tunnel has reduced the road distance by 16 km and cut travel time by about one and a half hours.
Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in Jammu & Kashmir.
- Location: It is located in the Himalayan terrain between Udhampur and Ramban.
- Connects: It connects Udhampur with Ramban on the Jammu–Srinagar route.
- Key Features: The 9 km long twin-tube tunnel has reduced travel time between Jammu and Srinagar by nearly two hours.
Tunnel T50 under USBRL Project
- Situated in: It is situated in Jammu & Kashmir.
- Location: It is located between Khari and Sumber.
Connects: It connects the Kashmir Valley with the rest of India through rail connectivity. - Key Features: It is a12.77 km long tunnel, stands as one of India’s longest transportation tunnel constructed under the Udhampur–Srinagar–Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project.
Zojila Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in the Himalayan region between Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
- Location: It is located at an altitude of about 11,578 feet on the Srinagar–Kargil–Leh National Highway.
- Connects: It connects Ladakh with the rest of the country through an all-weather road link.
- Key Features: Once completed in 2028, it will become India’s longest road tunnel and Asia’s longest bi-directional tunnel, while saving over ₹5,000 crore through the use of modern technology.
Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in Maharashtra.
- Location: It is located between Ghansoli and Shilphata, including an undersea section.
- Connects: It connects sections of the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail corridor.
- Key Features: The 4.8 km undersea tunnel is excavated simultaneously from both ends using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method under difficult underwater conditions.
- Designed as a single-tube tunnel capable of carrying two high-speed trains, it is a key feature of India’s first bullet train project.
Rishikesh–Karnaprayag New Rail Line Project Tunnels
- Situated in: It is situated in Uttarakhand.
- Location: It is located in the geologically complex and environmentally sensitive Himalayan terrain.
- Connects: It connects Rishikesh with Karnaprayag through a tunnel-dominated railway alignment.
- Key Features: The project comprises 16 main line tunnels with a cumulative length of approximately 105 km and 12 parallel escape tunnels totaling about 98 km. Overall, 199 km of tunnelling has been completed against a total scope of 213 km.
Kolkata Underwater Metro Tunnel
- Situated in: It is situated in West Bengal.
- Location: It is located beneath the Hooghly River.
- Connects: It connects Esplanade with Howrah Maidan.
- Key Features: Launched in 2024, it is India’s first underwater metro tunnel and a major engineering achievement.
