India’s longest bridge between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh In Final Stages Of Construction

GUWAHATI, April 16,2017: A 9.15 km long bridge, billed as India’s longest so far (that's nearly 30 per cent longer that the famous Bandra-Worli Sealink in Mumbai.), connecting Assam and Arunachal Pradesh is nearing completion. The bridge, which has now entered into the final stages, will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi around a year from now. Assam Chief Minister Sarbanand Sonowal presented an invite to PM Modi this week. The bridge will run over the Lohit river, a tributary of the mighty Brahmaputra river. In Assam, the bridge is located 540-km away from the state capital Guwahati in Sadia. The other end, which is located in Dhola, is at a distance of nearly 300-km from Arunachal’s capital city of Itanagar. The bridge, when opened for the public, will cut down the travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by as much as four hours. Since there is no operational airport in Arunachal Pradesh, this bridge will become as the most convenient way of travel between the two states. Construction began in 2011, when the Congress governed Assam. The cost of the project is about 950 crores.. The design of the bridge is such that it can even accommodate and withstand the movement of military tanks. Arunachal and Assam are states which are of massive strategic value to India and quick movement of military troops and artillery in these states is crucial in times of conflict. The Centre sanctioned a package of Rs. 50,000 crore in 2011 aimed at improving road connectivity between border states in the country. This project was part of the sanctioned package.