Srinagar, Jan 09, 2025, IANS

Srinagar, Jan 9 (IANS) Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to Jammu and Kashmir on January 13 to physically inaugurate the Z-Morh tunnel in Ganderbal district, a team of the Special Protection Group (SPG) is arriving here on Thursday. The SPG team will visit the venue of the inauguration of the Z-Morh tunnel and also take over the innermost protection ring of the VVIP security network. PM Modi will also address a public meeting at the inauguration site. Union Minister for Surface Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, J&K Lt. Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will be present during the inauguration of the tunnel that will make Sonamarg an all-weather tourist destination. The tunnel will bypass the road from Gagangir to Sonamarg. This stretch of the road was prone to avalanches and heavy snowfall preventing winter tourism in Sonamarg called the Golden Meadow. CM Omar Abdullah said the Z-Morh tunnel would be a game changer for winter tourism in Kashmir. The Z-Morh Tunnel is a 6.5 km long 2-lane road tunnel between Gagangir and Sonamarg on Srinagar-Leh National Highway. The tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity to Sonamarg. Once the Zojila tunnel, being constructed across the Zojila Pass, also becomes functional, the Srinagar-Leh Highway will become an all-weather highway providing year-round connectivity to the Ladakh region. Constructed at a cost of Rs 2,400 crore, the tunnel project was awarded on the build, own, operate and transfer (BOOT) basis, including construction, operation and maintenance of the tunnel. The developer has been awarded a maintenance period of 15 years from the completion date. The tunnel is 10 meters wide with a 7.5-metre-wide parallel escape tunnel to be used both in an emergency and as a railway tunnel. The tunnel is designed for the flow of 1,000 vehicles an hour at an approved maximum speed of 80 km per hour. The tunnel is located at an altitude of 8,652 ft. The construction of the tunnel was started in 2018. The tunnel construction was targeted by the terrorists last year. Two terrorists, a foreign mercenary and a local terrorist of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) entered the workers' camp at Gagangir on October 20, 2024 and fired indiscriminately. Seven civilians, including six non-local workers of the infrastructure company building the tunnel and a local doctor, were killed in that attack.