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Relevance: GS Paper III — Infrastructure & Internal Security · GS Paper I — Geography Source: Current Affairs, June 2026

Zojila Tunnel Breakthrough: India’s All-Weather Lifeline to Ladakh

1 · What happened

On June 9, 2026, India’s strategic Zojila Tunnel reached its final breakthrough. A “breakthrough” means the two ends of the digging finally met and the tunnel now runs through from one side to the other — so the digging (excavation) work is fully complete.
This is a big achievement. The tunnel has been built in one of the world’s most difficult and dangerous places — the high Greater Himalayas — where heavy snow, landslides, falling stones, and freezing cold make construction extremely hard.

Image : The Zojila and the Z- Morh tunnel on the the Srinagar – Kargil Highway

2 · What the tunnel is and why it matters

The Zojila Tunnel is a 13.14-km-long road tunnel built right under the dangerous Zojila Pass (the tunnel takes its name from this pass) on the National Highway -1.

It connects the Ganderbal district in the Kashmir valley with the Drass area of Ladakh’s Kargil district, and will be the world’s longest single-tube, two-way road tunnel built above 11,500 feet.

The Project
A Himalayan Giant
13.14 km long, 7.57 m high, horseshoe-shaped, single-tube (one main passage), two-lane tunnel at 11,578 feet. Cost: over ₹6,800 crore. Work began in 2020.
The Problem
The Deadly Pass
The Zojila Pass shuts fully in winter under heavy snow, and faces landslides and falling stones. The land also lies in unstable Seismic Zone IV — a high earthquake-risk area.
The Method
NATM Technology
Engineers used the New Austrian Tunnelling Method — dig a small part, then support it at once with sprayed concrete and rock bolts, so the rock itself helps carry the weight.
The Gain
3 Hours to 20 Minutes
Travel between Ganderbal and Kargil drops from 3 hours to just 20 minutes — giving Ladakh safe, all-weather road access for the very first time.

  • Strategic value for the Army:  Thr armed forces can move troops, heavy machines, fuel, and supplies to high-altitude Ladakh bases even in peak winter, when roads earlier stayed shut for months. This keeps soldiers on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) — India’s border with China — fully supplied all year round.
  • Breaking Ladakh’s isolation: For ordinary people, the tunnel ends Ladakh’s long winter cut-off from the rest of the country.
  • Boosting tourism: It will help local trade and jobs, allow students and patients to travel safely, and bring the region into the national mainstream.
  • Who built it: The work was carried out by Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd. (MEIL). The nodal (lead) government agency is the NHIDCL, set up specially for border and difficult mountain projects.
  • A “Smart Tunnel”: It runs on an Integrated Tunnel Control System (ITCS) — non-stop CCTV cameras, emergency lay-bys (safe stopping spaces), a ventilation system to clear vehicle smoke, and fire-fighting cabinets — so travel stays safe even in sub-zero cold.
  • The twin-tunnel team: The Zojila Tunnel works hand in hand with the nearby 6.5-km Z-Morh Tunnel. Together they make the NH-1 (Srinagar–Leh Highway) avalanche-free and open in every season.

UPSC Value Box
Zojila Pass High mountain pass on NH-1; snow-bound and closed in winter — now bypassed.
NH-1 Srinagar–Leh Highway, the main road link to Ladakh.
Z-Morh Tunnel 6.5 km tunnel working with Zojila to make NH-1 all-weather.
Seismic Zone IV High earthquake-risk zone (second highest) where the tunnel lies.
Single-Tube Tunnel A single-tube tunnel is a tunnel that has only one giant pipe (or tube) dug through the earth.
NHIDCL National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd; builds border & hill infrastructure.
LAC Line of Actual Control; India–China de facto border that the tunnel helps supply.

MCQ Practice Question
Q. With reference to the Zojila Tunnel, consider the following statements:

  1. It provides all-weather connectivity between the Kashmir valley and the Ladakh region under the Zojila Pass.
  2. It was constructed using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method, in which heavy concrete walls alone bear the entire load and the surrounding rock is given no structural role.
  3. The nodal agency for the project is the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL).

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only    (b) 2 and 3 only    (c) 1 and 3 only    (d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (c) 1 and 3 only

  • Statement 1 — Correct: The tunnel runs under the Zojila Pass and gives all-weather road access between the Kashmir valley (Ganderbal) and Ladakh (Kargil/Drass).
  • Statement 2 — Incorrect: NATM works in the opposite way described here. It lets the surrounding rock act as its own load-bearing ring, supported by sprayed concrete (shotcrete) and rock bolts — it does not rely on heavy concrete walls alone. The logic has been reversed.
  • Statement 3 — Correct: The NHIDCL, a company under the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, is the nodal agency for this strategic border project.
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