Expressing the need for a tunnel connecting Kedarnath and Badrinath, Uttarakhand governor Dr Aziz Qureshi on Thursday said that the Uttarakhand government was actively considering the proposal mooted by him.
Heavy rainfall with cloudbursts resulting in landslides played havoc in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand from June 14, 2013 and in one month, as per government figures,5,700 persons were presumed dead after, in many cases, bodies not being recovered. In a first of its kind rescuue and relief operation, the Indian Air Force, Indian Army and para-military forces evacuated 1.1 lakh persons from the flood-affected areas of the hilly state.
Uttarakhand governor Dr Qureshi was in Mumbai for a private visit and while speaking to mediapersons at the Raj Bhavan he expressed the need for constructing a tunnel connecting Kedarnath and Badrinath. He said that he was approached by a few individuals, who had contacts with international experts, who also suggested that it was possible to build a tunnel between the two pilgrim spots of Kedarnath and Badrinath.
The governor said that as per information available from locals, there used to be a priest who performed daily rituals at both religious spots. They say he was able to do so because the two spots were connected by a secret route. He said that it is possible to build a tunnel despite the entire Himalayan region being an earthquake-prone area. He questioned that if under-sea high speed railway tracks were being built abroad why couldn't a tunnel come up between Kedarnath and Badrinath? He added that engineers should be consulted for a solution. The tunnel, he added, could rejuvenate economy of the hilly state.
Qureshi said that building toilet blocks, sanitation facilities, providing drinking water, oxygen and kerosene along with the availability of life-saving drugs would reinstate faith of the pilgrims and it would bring back tourists to the state. Replying to a question he said that the state government has made arrangements so that even in case of snowfall restoration work could continue. He said that in all likelihood the state can be restored to its earlier positionas a tourist destination with other developments only in the next five years.
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