Why in news? Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari inspected the under-construction Zojila tunnel, which will establish all-weather connectivity between the Union Territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir.

What is the Zojila tunnel?

• The Zojila tunnel will be India’s longest road tunnel, and is expected to be Asia’s longest bi-directional tunnel, boasting a length of 14.15 km.
• The tunnel, will provide all-year, all-weather connectivity between Srinagar and Leh, and also significantly cut down travel time.
• connecting tunnel from Z-Morh on NH1 to the Zojila tunnel will be built in the Zojila Ghats between Sonmarg and Kargil. This involves the development and expansion of the 18.475-km highway between Z-Morh to Zojila.
• A 3-km stretch will be expanded; the rest will be newly developed. The highway will have two twin-tube tunnels, five bridges, and two snow galleries.

Why is the tunnel needed?

• Currently, the commute between Srinagar and Leh, the largest city in Ladakh, takes over 10 hours on a good day and passes through extremely inhospitable terrain. The Zojila Pass is a high mountain pass through which one has to travel in order to make the journey.