What is the update on the Chamba (near Dalhousie)-Sach Pass-Khillar (Pangi Valley)-Udaipur (Lahaul Valley) road? Is it complete? I beleive bikers are already getting through and HRTC runs a bus service between Chamba and Udaipur.
Any updates?
Am reproducing a recent news report (Aug 7, 2007) from the Tribune newspaper that discusses the route and also a photo album link on some Delhi bikers on that route.
The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Himachal PLUS [COLOR=#9136ad]http://picasaweb.google.com/siddhuavinash/SachPass[/COLOR] Road to connectivity
Construction work on the road link from Chamba to Killar via Sach Pass is in full swing
Kulwinder Sandhu
The construction work on one of the most treacherous roads of Himachal Pradesh, the 170 km long Chamba-Killar state highway, passing through the 14,500-feet Saach Pass, is going on a war footing. However, it would take an year for the road to be opened for heavy vehicles.The construction work between Bhagotu and Chandrabhaga Bridge at Sukrali is in full swing these days. More than 300 labourers are working for over 10 hours daily on this highway, even in the adversaries of weather.
Chief engineer of the public works department (north zone) R.S. Kanwar says that the jeepable road between Bhagotu-Killar is one of the most hazardous road stretches of the hilly state because of the hard rock strata and sharp gradients.
The construction work on this road had begun way back in the year 1962 and Rs 50crore has been spent on the construction of this road. Last year, the bus service was started between Barragarh and Bhagotu on July 10 but it continued only for a few days as a sudden snowfall on Saach Pass forced the authorities to suspend it.
This year, the road was opened by the PWD for vehicular traffic on June 26, after clearing the heavy snow from both sides from Bhagotu towards Saach Pass and from Satrundi to Saach Pass. Again the bus service between Chamba and Bhagotu was introduced from June 30.On transit shipment basis, two light vehicles (maxi cabs) of the HRTC carry the bus passengers from Bhagotu to Killar through the 30 km jeepable stretch between Bhagotu and Killar.
The Chamba-Killar state highway has been a dream of the people of Chamba district since it is the lone road connectivity to Killar, which is the headquarters of tribal belt of Pangi from the district headquarters of Chamba. The tribal people are looking forward to see that their long-awaited desire of motorable road is converted into a reality as this road has assumed greater significance over the years. The alternative road connectivity to Killar is either from Manali-Keylong-Udaypur or from Pathankot via Jammu, Kishtwar and Gulabgarh, which falls under Doda district in Jammu and Kashmir that is a terrorist affected belt. However, these two alternate roads often remain closed for the flow of vehicular traffic.
The 21 km stretch between Bhagotu and Chanderbhaga bridge at Shukrali has been covered under Bharat Nirman Yojna and an outlay of Rs 15crore has been made for the cutting, formation and retaining structures for this road under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna. As many as 20 contractors including one lady contractor Shring Lama have been awarded contracts for numerous works on this road stretch. The construction works come to a grinding halt after heavy snowfall. Moreover, the entire Pangi valley in Chamba district has an extremely difficult terrain coupled with indifferent climatic conditions. Notwithstanding, the state government is committed to provide 100 per cent road connectivity to all the 16 panchayats of this tribal belt within the next three years, claimed the chief engineer R.S. Kanwar.
Presently, only 14 panchayats are connected with motorable and jeepable roads. The Pangi valley has a population of about 21,000 people, spread over an area of 1,601 square kilometers with 54 inhabited villages. So far, the motorable road length of 140 km has been completed within the valley, apart from the jeepable stretch of 57 kilometers.
Earlier, the tribal people were required to undergo an ordeal of 800 km long journey to reach Killar from Chamba via Mandi, Kullu, Manali, Keylong, Udaipur and it took at least four days to reach Killar. Unfortunately, this road is also blocked for the past four months. The road link from Chamba to Killar via Sach Pass would indeed be one of the remarkable features of road connectivity in the history of the means of communication. This is known as Alwas-Killar road and it is part of the Ahju khara-Mukh-Chamba-Tissa- Alwas-Killar road. The road from Chamba to Killar meanders through Tissa, Barragarh, Kalaban, Satrundi, Saach Pass and Bhagotu.
28th October 2007, 14:41
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