Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the Z-Morh tunnel located on the Srinagar-Leh Highway in Jammu and Kashmir. This tunnel will not only make the tourist destination Sonmarg accessible by road throughout the year, but it will also provide a vital link to Leh, bypassing landslide and avalanche-prone routes. Additionally, it will ensure safer and uninterrupted access to the Ladakh region year-round.
Furthermore, the tunnel will bolster military logistics and operational capabilities in Kashmir and Ladakh—regions that are sensitive from a national security standpoint—leading to quicker mobilization of resources and personnel when necessary.
It was at the site of this very tunnel that terrorists had killed seven people last year. During the inauguration, Modi paid tributes to the seven individuals, including a local doctor. He also met the construction workers who had worked under harsh conditions to complete the tunnel.
While the Rs 2,700 crore, 6.5 km tunnel, situated at a height of 8,650 meters, was conceptualized by the Border Roads Organization in 2012, it was not until 2015 that the actual construction work began. This tunnel is part of the larger Zojila Tunnel project between Baltal and Minamarg, which was inaugurated in May 2018 by Modi. The Zojila Tunnel project will provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar, Kargil, and Leh, and at 14.2 km, it will be the country’s longest road tunnel. The Zojila Tunnel will cut down the time taken to cross the Zojila pass from 3.5 hours to just 15 minutes.
The Z-Morh tunnel inaugurated by PM Modi will significantly reduce travel time between Srinagar and Sonmarg, allowing vehicles to travel at speeds of up to 80 km/h, compared to the previous 30 km/h on winding mountain roads.
While addressing a public rally during the inauguration of the tunnel, Modi made significant statements and said, “I am Modi, and I keep the promises I make.”
“You have to believe that this is Modi and he keeps his promises. There is a right time for everything and right things will happen at the right time,” Modi said, without mentioning the demand for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. His remarks came shortly after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah sought the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir during his speech at the event.
The PM, who was on his first visit to the state after the last year’s assembly elections (the first after the abrogation of Article 370), recalled the timeline of the tunnel construction, whose importance will become visible in the coming years.
“The actual construction work of the Sonamarg Tunnel started only in 2015 after our government was formed at the Centre. I am happy that the work of this tunnel has been completed by our government,” Modi said. “Sonamarg Tunnel will ensure Sonamarg’s connectivity during winter. It will give new wings to tourism in Sonamarg and the region. Many rail and road connectivity projects are going to be completed in Jammu and Kashmir in the coming days.”
He stated that the work done by the central government in the last two decades had brought positive changes to Kashmir.
“Today people are going to Lal Chowk to eat ice cream at night, and my artist friends from Kashmir have made Polo View Market a new habitat center. In Srinagar, people go to the cinema hall with their children and watch movies. No government can do so many things that change the situation…A few months ago, an international marathon was held for the first time in Srinagar. The Chief Minister also participated in the marathon. His video also went viral, and I also specially congratulated him when I met him in Delhi. This is really a new era of a new Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.
Speaking at the event, CM Omar Abdullah, a senior figure of the INDIA bloc (an alliance formed before the May 2024 general elections to defeat the BJP), praised the PM for keeping his word.
“You told the people of Jammu and Kashmir that elections would be held soon, giving them the opportunity to choose their government through their votes. You kept your word, and within four months, elections were held in Jammu and Kashmir. You gave the people a chance to vote and select their government, and today, as a result, I am participating in this program and speaking to you as the CM. The elections were conducted with enthusiastic participation, and the most significant point is that there were no complaints of rigging or misuse of power, and no polling booth required a re-poll. The credit for this goes to you, your colleagues, and the Election Commission of India,” Abdullah said. This development is unlikely to go down well with other leaders of the INDIA bloc.
Apart from Modi and Abdullah, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha were present at the event.
Official sources said that before the tunnel was built, there were 10-15 spots on the road where avalanches would trigger and block the road, making the highway impassable for more than six months a year. The tunnel will bypass the entire zig-zag of the avalanche belt. Of the 6.5 km, almost 6 km was considerably avalanche-prone as the road passed through rocky cliffs that could not retain the snow deposits.
The tunnel construction initially faced a lot of challenges, including financial constraints and administrative hurdles. It was first awarded to Tunnelway Limited, then it was taken over by the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL). The tunnel is designed as a two-lane bi-directional road structure with a width of 10 meters. It is capable of accommodating up to 1,000 vehicles per hour at speeds of up to 80 km/h. The tunnel employed the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM) for its construction. Notable safety features include a parallel escape tunnel for emergencies and an advanced ventilation system.