Fire hydrants have also been installed inside the tunnel in case of any fire incident.
Manali (Himachal Pradesh):
The construction of the Atal Tunnel connecting Manali to Leh, which is the longest road tunnel in the world above 10,000 feet, was completed in a span of 10 years, while the original estimated time was less than six years .
“The Atal Tunnel, which connects Manali to Leh, is the longest road tunnel in the world above 10,000 feet. The estimated period for completion of this tunnel was less than 6 years, but it was completed in 10 years “said KP Purushothaman, chief engineer. .
“There are CCTV cameras every 60 meters and emergency exit tunnels every 500 meters inside the tunnel. The tunnel will reduce the distance between Manali and Leh by 46 kilometers and four hours can be saved,” Purushothaman said.
Fire hydrants have also been installed inside the tunnel in case of any fire incident.
“The induction and de-induction of resources was a difficult task while it was under construction. We faced many challenges, but together we were able to complete its construction. The width of the tunnel is 10.5 meters, including the 1 meter path on both sides.” KP Purushothaman said.
Speaking to ANI, Colonel Parikshit Mehra, project manager for the Atal tunnel, said that many experts working within the team were of the opinion to change the tunnel alignment.
“We have had this dream of connecting Leh and this was the first step towards the ladder of connectivity. This tunnel was a challenging project because we were only working from two ends. The other end was in the north, on the other side of Rohtang Pas, to the it was only accessible for about five months a year, “he added.
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