Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday, 1 July 2026, announced the completion of two major infrastructure works on NH-44 in Jammu and Kashmir — an 810-metre viaduct near Ramsoo in Ramban district and the 3.5-km AT-03 Tunnel connecting Digdole to Panthyal — built at a combined cost of ₹680 crore.

Context

Gadkari's post described the two structures as 'engineering marvels' that 'bypass one of the most landslide-prone stretches of the Ramban–Banihal section, ensuring safer, faster, and all-weather connectivity to the Kashmir Valley.' The viaduct sits on the northbound carriageway while the AT-03 Tunnel serves the southbound carriageway, together forming a bidirectional bypass of a chronically hazardous segment of the highway.

The minister tagged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and the Office of the LG of Jammu and Kashmir in the announcement, signalling close coordination between the Union Ministry and the UT administration on the project's delivery.

Policy Backdrop

The works are part of a broader programme to replace the most vulnerable segments of the old Jammu–Srinagar highway. The Bharatmala Pariyojana, launched in 2015, identified NH-44 upgrades as a priority corridor for faster freight movement and strategic defence access. Following the reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir into a Union Territory in 2019, multiple tunnel and elevated-road packages on this corridor were fast-tracked by the central government.

The hashtag #GatiShakti used in the minister's post links the announcement to the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, the government's digital platform for integrated, multimodal infrastructure planning. The Ramban–Banihal section has historically been among the most disrupted stretches of NH-44, with frequent landslides cutting off the Kashmir Valley for days at a time during monsoon and winter months.

Stakeholders and Impact

Gadkari's post enumerated the direct beneficiaries: tourists, local commuters, defence vehicles, freight operators, and suppliers of essential goods to the Valley. All-weather access on this corridor has long been a strategic priority, given that the highway serves as the primary land route for military logistics to the Kashmir Valley and onward to Ladakh.

For civilian users, the bypass structures are expected to significantly cut travel time between Jammu and Srinagar and reduce accident risk on a stretch that has historically recorded a disproportionate share of highway fatalities. Freight operators and the tourism sector — both critical to J&K's economy — stand to gain from more predictable transit windows throughout the year.

What's Next

The completion of the viaduct and AT-03 Tunnel marks progress on individual packages, but the broader Ramban–Banihal corridor programme includes additional tunnels and bypass structures still under various stages of construction. The government is expected to track remaining packages through the PM GatiShakti platform to ensure coordinated delivery across civil, defence, and logistics requirements.

With the monsoon season under way, the operational readiness of these new structures will be an early test of their stated purpose: providing uninterrupted connectivity precisely when the old alignment is most vulnerable to disruption.