THOLANG : The decades-long dream of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s friend, Arjun Gopal, came true on Saturday with the inauguration of the Atal Tunnel in Rohtang in Himachal Pradesh.
Amar Singh and Ram Dev, sons of Arjun Gopal alias Tshidawa, said their father had suggested the construction of the tunnel to the former prime minister.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the strategically important all-weather Atal tunnel, which reduces the distance between Manali and Leh by 46 km and travel time by four to five hours.
The Atal Tunnel is the longest road tunnel in the world, and the 9.02 km tunnel connects Manali with the Lahaul-Spiti Valley year-round. The valley was isolated for about six months each year due to heavy snowfall.
The tunnel is built to ultra-modern specifications in the Pir Panjal mountain range of the Himalayas at an altitude of 3,000 meters (10,000 feet) above mean sea level (MSL).
Himachal Pradesh’s Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur had previously said: “Vajpayee had the idea to build the tunnel at the suggestion of his friend Arjun Gopal from Tashi Dobhe village in Lahaul.”
Speaking to PTI in his hometown Tholang in Lahaul-Spiti district, Amar Singh (75) said that his father met Vajpayee in 1998 in Delhi, seeking the construction of a strategically significant tunnel under the Rohtang pass for the benefit of Lahaul-Spiti residents. district.
“My father passed away in 2008. Today, his decades-long dream came true and my joy has no limits,” he said.
Singh, who retired as deputy state director (education), said the former prime minister and his father became close during a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) officer training camp (OTC) in 1942 in Gujarat’s Vadodara.
“When Vajpayee became prime minister in 1998, my father met him through a prominent RSS activist, Chaman Lal…” he said.
Singh said that ‘Lahaul-Spiti-Pangi Janjaati Sewa Samiti’ was formed with Gopal as its founding president to continue the construction of the tunnel.
He said that Vajpayee sent copies of the memorandum that was presented to him for the construction of the tunnel to the ministries of defense, finance and surface transport.
Following initial objection from the Defense Ministry, the Union government gave its approval for the tunnel construction in 2000, Singh said, adding that Vajpayee himself announced about the project during a public meeting in Keylong in June 2000.
Gopal’s other son, Ram Dev (61), a retired state information department official, said the Lahaul-Spiti district economy would see a drastic change after the tunnel opens.
He also traveled on a Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus that was pointed out by Modi from the north portal in Lahaul to the south portal in Manali of the Kullu district.
“The agriculture, horticulture and tourism sectors of the tribal district will witness a positive sea change in the coming days. The tribal district used to be isolated for about five months due to snow-laden roads during winters, “Dev added.
Residents of the tribal district also praised the construction of the tunnel.
Pushpa Devi, from the district’s Kirting village, said there was no longer a need to rush to other districts for medical help. She said previous pregnant women were transferred from the district to Kullu-Manali for safe delivery.
Similarly, Sanjay Yarpa from Gahar Valley said critical patients had to suffer a lot as they could not be airlifted to Kullu-Manali for better medical care as helicopters did not land here due to bad weather during winters. .
“This problem will cease to exist since road connectivity through the tunnel will remain in operation almost all year round,” he was delighted.
PTI DJI SRY
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