Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurates webinar organized by Border Roads Organization

Building a great structure like Atal Tunnel, not only brick and mortar but also a sense of national pride is most important- Shri Rajnath Singh

Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurates webinar organized by Border Roads Organization
Union Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Army Chief General M.M. Narwane, Defense Secretary Dr. Ajay Kumar, and Director General BRO Lt Gen Rajiv Chaudhary (PSU Connect)

New Delhi: The Border Roads Organization on 11 January organized a webinar on the Atal tunnel to disseminate the experiences gained from the Atal tunnel for the benefit of the IITs, NITs, and other technical institutions.

Inaugurating this all-day webinar, Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh appreciated the engineers of Border Roads Organization (BRO) for constructing this engineering marvel despite the many technical challenges during the Covid-19 restrictions. He cited the example of the Fault Zone of Seri Nalla, which also posed a serious challenge to big engineers from abroad, but our engineers succeeded in dealing with the challenge of Seri Nalla. He said that for building a great structure like Atal Tunnel, not only brick and mortar but also a sense of national pride is most important. Recalling the many achievements of the past of Indian scientists and engineers, the Defence Minister said that he has always shown his skill in various fields.

Referring to the self-reliant India campaign to deal with the challenges created due to Covid-19, Shri Rajnath Singh said that we are looking for PPE kits, masks, sanitizers, etc. not only to meet our domestic requirements but also in other countries Have also been successful in mobilizing their resources rapidly to supply it. He said that the government has given the highest priority to the development of border areas and BRO has deployed about 67 percent of its workforce on the northern border. Praising the efforts and achievements of BRO during the year 2020, the Defence Minister said that no cuts were made in BRO's budget despite the Covid-19 restrictions.

The Defence Minister also released a compendium document listing the experiences and challenges faced during the construction of the world's longest tunnel (9.020 km) at a height of more than 3000 meters.

Inaugurating the Atal Tunnel, Rohtang on 3 October 2020, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi suggested that such a compendium should be submitted for the benefit of students and professionals from engineering institutions.

This webinar will help in increasing the knowledge of all faculty members and interested students, especially final year students, to deal with future challenges in tunnel construction. More than 1,000 people attended this webinar.

Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Army Chief General M.M. Narwane, Defence Secretary Dr. Ajay Kumar, and Director General BRO Lt Gen Rajiv Chaudhary also attended the inaugural session.

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