A total of five consulting firms have submitted bids to prepare the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the second tube of Zoji La Tunnel of NH-1 in Jammu & Kashmir, as reported by the Metrorail Guy.
The bids were opened on Tuesday (2 May) and the final consultant for the project will be selected in May or June.
The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDC) had invited tenders for the consultancy contract in January 2023 with 300-day completion deadline.
The five bidders in fray include Centro de Estudios de Materiales y Control de Obra, Intercontinental Consultants and Technocrats Pvt Ltd, Pini Group SA, TUMAS Turkish Engineering Consulting & Contracting Inc Co and one railway PSU — RITES.
The selected consultant will conduct feasibility study, prepare DPR and provide pre-construction services for construction of second tube of the uni-directional 13.14 km Zojila Tunnel
Currently work in underway for the first tube of the strategically important Zoji La Tunnel that connects the Kashmir valley with the Union Territory of Ladakh.
The 13.14 km-long tunnel, constructed by the Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL), has a horseshoe shape and passes under the mighty Zoji La, connecting Ganderbal in Kashmir and Drass town in the Kargil district of Ladakh.
At present, 28 per cent work of the Zoji La Tunnel has been completed. The travel time will come down to 20 minutes from over one hour.
Union Minister for Transport and Roadways Minister, Nitin Gadkari, who inspected the tunnel in April said efforts are being made to open the tunnel for traffic ahead of its deadline set for 2026. “We are planning to open part of the project earlier than 2026,” Gadkari said.