L&T, IRCON & Medha place bid for Zojila tunnel

Larsen & Toubro, Medha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd and IRCON have placed a bid for the ₹4,400 crore Zojila Pass tunnel connecting Kashmir with Ladakh. The project, earlier awarded in 2017, was terminated after the crisis-hit IL&FS. It is for the first time that a provision to provide helicopter services has been incorporated as in the bidding document of a road project to transport officials and workers to the worksite to ensure that work can continue round the year. The contractor shall provide the helicopter service within one month from the appointed date. The construction period has been reduced to six years from the earlier estimate of seven years. The emergency escape tunnel has been done away with, which was estimated to cost ₹850 crore and the new bid includes the widening of the existing 18 km approach road to 10 metres. The NHIDCL has targeted 2.5 years time for completing the approach road, which will also have two tunnels with a length of 2 km and another underground portion of 2.5 km.