The work on the Kunfel tunnel connecting Peeda with Chanderkote along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway is nearing completion, with one of the twin tubes likely to be thrown open for traffic by the end of next week, officials said on Tuesday.
The construction of the 924-metre tunnel, which will bypass a nearly three-km landslide and accident-prone area in Ramban district, started in 2018 after a year’s delay due to some issues related to awarding of contract by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
Gammon India Limited has been given the contract for constructing the tunnel.
The tunnel is part of the ongoing four-laning of the 270-km Jammu-Srinagar national highway — the only all-weather road linking Kashmir with the rest of the country.
“The first tube of the Kunfer tunnel is almost complete and we are expecting it to be opened for traffic within the next eight days,” Deputy Commissioner, Ramban, Mussarat Islam said.