Vijay V.
Road and rail infrastructure in border areas has a direct bearing on military preparedness. In order to facilitate effective border management, security and development of infrastructure in inaccessible areas adjoining the China Border, a total of 73 strategically important roads were identified by the government as Indo China Border Roads (ICBR) and planned to be completed by 2012. Besides, the Ministry of Defence approved 14 strategic rail lines in 2010. Progress has, however, been slow. As of July 2018, only 34 of the 73 roads were completed. Construction of four prioritized strategic railway lines along the Indo-China border was yet to be sanctioned. Further, serious deficiencies in the quality of road construction have been reported. “Issues like improper gradient, undulating surface, improper turning radius, minimum passing places, inadequate drainage and unsatisfactory riding comfort in 17 out of 24 roads selected for audit. Completed roads were not fit for running specialized vehicles and equipment because of the above limitations”.