New Delhi, May 26
Roads needed by security forces along the frontier with China have been delayed by five to seven years forcing Defence Minister AK Antony to make a major shift. He has told the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to “look at other public sector companies and even private companies to expedite road construction”.

The BRO, a body under the Ministry of Defence, is tasked with laying down roads in the Himalayas, especially those needed for strategic purposes. Antony, at a review meeting of the BRO on May 20, not only asked the BRO to augment its own capacity, he specifically told officials to ‘harness the potential’ of other public sector organisations and private companies, sources told the Tribune. The National Highways Authority of India is one such body in the government domain.

The Defence Minister was said to be ‘angry’ at the long delays and asked how deadlines were being missed. Across the border, China continues to build rapidly.

Data of the BRO till March 31, 2013, shows that only 16 of the 73 roads along the Chinese frontier have been completed. The remaining have been delayed with deadlines getting extended. The problems include slow-pace of work, pending clearances from the environment ministry, adverse working conditions like snow-bound areas, non-availability of labour and lastly, in some areas dropping of material is possible only through helicopters.

Most of these roads have been okayed by the high-profile China Study Group with an eye to facilitate movements of troops and equipment. Sources said Antony made it clear to the BRO that he would seek allocation of more funds “provided they showed sufficient progress by October this year.”

The most glaring delay was the construction of the 255 km of road connecting Darbok-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie in northern Ladakh. The road was scheduled for completion in 2012, but is now slated for completion in 2016. The recent three-week long stand-off between Indian and Chinese troops south east of Daulat Beg Oldie had exposed how Indian Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) struggled on terrain that has no road while their counterparts in China had metalled road just few kilometers short of the stand-off location.

In J&K, only three of the 12 allocated roads are complete, the rest has been delayed by several years with fresh completion dates being either 2016 or ‘beyond 2016’. These includes the roads that connect the advanced landing ground of Fukche and forward locations like Demchok, both in south-eastern Ladakh, along the LAC with China. Another one pending is across the 18,300-feet high Marsimk-la pass that will give Indian troops an easy access to a commanding view of a the LAC north of the disputed Pangong lake in Eastern Ladakh.

The worst hit is Arunachal Pradesh. Out of the 21 roads allocated to the BRO, only nine have been completed, three of which have a length of less than 20 km each.

Uttarakhand was allocated 14 roads but none has been completed. Here the BRO has explained that a ban on quarrying for stones in the upper reaches of the Ganges has affected the work. However, the shocker is the non-completion of mere 6.5-km road connection between Girthidobla and Sumna which was slated for completion in 2012.