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Dimapur, June 28 (EMN): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday dedicated 63 bridges built by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) in six states and two union territories (UTs) at an event held at Kyungam, 88 km from Leh in the Union Territory of Ladakh.
The Defence minister inaugurated a 50-metre-long bridge constructed on the Leh-Loma Road in Ladakh at the event.
“This single span steel super structure bridge, which replaces an existing bailey bridge, will ensure unhindered movement of heavy weapon systems, including guns, tanks and other specialised equipment,” read an update from the Ministry of Defence.
In addition, Singh virtually inaugurated 62 more bridges – 11 in Ladakh, four in Jammu & Kashmir, three in Himachal Pradesh, six in Uttarakhand, eight in Sikkim, 29 in Arunachal Pradesh and one each in Nagaland and Manipur.
‘The combined cost of the projects is INR 240 crore and they will provide a tremendous boost to connectivity in the border areas,’ read the updated.
Speaking on the occasion, Singh lauded BRO’s commitment towards establishing connectivity to far-flung areas, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, saying that some of these bridges would become a lifeline for many villages located in remote inaccessible areas. Underlining the importance of connectivity, especially in border areas for the development of a nation, he reaffirmed the Government’s resolve to ensure infrastructure development in far-flung border areas and added that the inauguration of 63 bridges was an important step in that direction, the report added.
It went on to state that with the inauguration of a number of bridges at one go, BRO had surpassed its own record of 44 bridges launched in 2020. “These 63 bridges, combined with 12 roads dedicated to the nation by Rajnath Singh on June 17, 2021, form a bouquet of 75 infrastructure projects completed by BRO, when the nation is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its Independence,” read the update.
Singh inaugurated the bridges in the presence of Lt Governor of Ladakh RK Mathur, Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command Lt Gen YK Joshi, DG Border Roads Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry and other senior civil & military officials from Ministry of Defence, Indian Army, BRO and civil administration.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat, Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang; Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region & Minister of State, PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh; MP from Jammu & Kashmir Jugal Kishore Sharma, MP from Uttarakhand Ajay Tamta and MP from Mizoram C Lalrosanga were among those who attended the event virtually.