The Central government has been carrying out infrastructure development "aggressively" on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in order to counter the Chinese aggression in the border regions of Arunachal Pradesh. The Union government has assigned the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to develop and maintain all road networks in the key border areas of western Assam and western Arunachal Pradesh.
Speaking to the news agency ANI, chief engineer of 'Project Vartak', Brig Raman Kumar said that the government wants to connect even the remote areas of the state in order to promote social and economical development of the region. "We have national highways, single-lane roads, double-lane roads and other types of roads as well. We want to connect even the far-flung areas of the Tawang district and contribute to the socio-economic development of this area," he said.
Special tunnels for snow-free roads
Further, the official said that two tunnels the Sela tunnel and the Nechipu tunnel -- are under construction. He informed the agency that the main aim of the tunnel is to maintain snow-free roads during extreme winter. As of now, vehicular movement is very difficult during the winter season.
The Sela tunnel is under construction and is 400 meters below the Sela pass. Once the tunnel is completed, people will be able to pass through it even in winter. We are also working on the Nechipu tunnel, near the Nechipu pass. Once they are completed, both military, as well as civilian vehicular movement, would be a lot more smooth. It will boost not just infrastructure in the area but tourism as well," the engineer said.
More mobile towers installed to enhance connectivity
Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is also developing communication channels in order to enhance connectivity near the border region. Several mobile towers have been installed in Tawang, where the Indian and Chinese troops had confronted each other in a violent clash. "The mobile and internet connectivity has improved but still it is not up to the mark. There are a lot of disturbances," said a resident on internet connectivity. "If we compare from before, the connectivity has improved a lot. Earlier, we were not able to use the internet but now we can even use Facebook and WhatsApp. The government has worked very well in these areas," another resident said.
"No one can alter the status quo": Defence Minister
It is worth mentioning, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh informed the Rajya Sabha that China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops tried to transgress the Line of Actual Control in the Yangtse area of Tawang Sector in Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally change the status quo but they were forced to retreat to their positions due to the timely intervention of Indian troops. The Defence Minister assured the Upper House that "our forces are committed to protecting our territorial integrity and will continue to thwart any attempt made to alter the status quo".
