Much awaited tunnel

The decades-old sufferings of the people along the Srinagar-Jammu national highway has seemingly come to an end as the government has finally thrown open the historical T5 tunnel of the four-lane road project at Panthyal between Ramban and Banihal for the vehicular movement. It was the long pending demand of the commuters, who used to travel along the highway frequently as the road, especially at Panthyal witnessed shooting stones hundreds of times, leading to the closure of the only road connecting Kashmir with the rest of the country for days together. The people usually prefer to reach outside States via national highway as the skyrocketing process of air tickets has always pushed the people, belonging to the middle class families, to the wall. However, the opening of the tunnel is all set to help commuters to bypass the most vulnerable spots on the National Highway in Panthayal. Such a step would not only help the commuters to reach their destinations of time, but it would also put an end to the blockage of essentials along the highway, which has always led to the price hike on essentials, especially food stuff in the Valley. The work over the construction of much-awaited twin-tube 880-metre tunnel, part of the highway realignment project, started in 2020 and a first step with regard to putting an end to the suffering has been taken while the further measures including Jaiswal Bridge and the double-lane of Ramban Flyover and the Banihal Bypass would completely bring respite to the people. The much-awaited tunnel has been appreciated by one and all, but there is a need to ensure that all other related works are completed on time so that the people, especially commuters could heave a sigh of relief.