The Atal Tunnel, the longest road tunnel built at an altitude of more than 10,000 feet, has witnessed three accidents in the three days after its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the chief engineer of the tunnel of BRO, Brig KP Purushothaman has blamed reckless and negligent driving. by tourists for accidents.
He added that some tourists created an uproar inside the tunnel. Some clicked selfies while others threw caution and traffic rules down. “This indecent behavior of the tourists was captured by cameras installed inside the tunnel,” he said.
Purushotman added that he had broached the issue of safety and traffic management inside the tunnel with the Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti Police Superintendents (SP).
The BRO official said he had asked the state police to prepare a traffic management SOP. On Sunday, three vehicles collided inside the tunnel for speeding; however, no cases were recorded as the motorists reached a compromise.
Meanwhile, Himachal Police Director General (DGP) Sanjay Kundu said that as an interim arrangement, a reserve battalion has been assigned to the Kullu and Lahaul-Spiti district police for traffic control and management and law and order in the tunnel. The 9.02 km long tunnel has been divided into two parts: a 4.5 km stretch from the south side of the portal will be run by the Kullu police, while the other half will be run by the Kullu police. Lahaul-Spiti.
He said the BRO has established control rooms in both the north and south portal of the tunnel and an SI rank officer has been deployed in each control room.
Also read: The Atal tunnel is of strategic importance: Himachal CM
Kundu said that the police will also install barriers in Solang and Teling to control vehicles before crossing the tunnel. The transport of explosives or petroleum products through the tunnel will not be allowed.
“Apart from this, we have developed standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the vehicles that cross the tunnel and manage the traffic. A proposal was sent to the government for the installation of police stations in the extreme north and south.
The police have created a board of officials who visited the Jawahar Tunnel in Banihal and the Dr Shayama Prasad Mukherjee Tunnel in Chenani-Nashri to study the security configuration adopted by the police in UT.
The panel was headed by Inspector General of Police (Security) Daljit Thakur. The board’s recommendations were presented to the government, Kundu said.
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