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Prime Minister kick starts work for Zojila tunnel, Asia's longest bi-directional tunnel in Leh
Modi also participate in closing ceremony of 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche




Leh(Ladakh), May 19, (Scoop News)-Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday kick started work for Zojila tunnel, to provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar, Kargil and Leh.


It is situated at an altitude of 11,578 feet on Srinagar-Kargil-Leh National Highway which remains closed during winters.

The Zoji La pass will be Asia's longest bi-directional tunnel and is being constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 6,089 crore.

Prime Minister Modi also participate in the closing ceremony of the birth Centenary of Buddhist spiritual leader the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche.

The Prime Minister who is on a day's visit to all the three regions Leh, Kashmir and Jammu also attended the closing ceremony of the 100th birth anniversary celebrations of the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche (Buddhist spiritual guru).


Bakula was seen as the force behind several political agitations in the region and was its voice all over the world. He was born in Matho on May 21, 1917, and educated at Geshes, Lhasa (Tibet). A scholar of the Mahayana school of Buddhism, he was head priest of the Spituk Gompa. He died in 2003.
Bakula Rinpoche served the state and nation as he was elected as the member of legislative assembly of Jammu and Kashmir in 1951. He became a minister in the then state government.
He was elected as Member of Parliament representing Ladakh for two consecutive terms — 1967 and 1971. During 1962 Sino-Indian war, he had allowed the Army to convert a section of his Pethub Monastery into a makeshift military hospital.
In 1989, he was appointed as India’s ambassador to Mongolia which made him the first and only Monk diplomat in the world.
Over a period of ten years, he helped reopen ancient monasteries, organise Buddhist peace conferences and re-established Buddhism. Under his guidance, Pethub Monastery and Dechen Ling Nunnery in Ulaanbaatar developed into important centres of learning for the Mongolian Buddhists.
His services in Mangolia were deeply appreciated and he is foundly remembered as ‘Elchin Bagsh’ (ambassador-teacher). In 2001, he was conferred the Polar Star award, Mongolia’s second-highest civilian award. The Pethub Stangey Choskhor Ling Monastery was also built at Ulaanbaatar.The recipient of the Padma Bhushan, he was also a tall statesman and is described as the architect of Modern Ladakh.



At the ceremony JK Governor NN Vohra,Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti,Dy CM Kavinder Gupta and Center Ministers were also present here, the Prime Minister recalled the rich contribution of the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche. His was a life dedicated to serving others, the Prime Minister said.

He added that the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche distinguished himself as an outstanding diplomat. He mentioned that during his visit to Mongolia, he had witnessed first-hand, the goodwill he has in that country.




Prime Minister Modi said projects worth Rs 25,000 crore would either be initiated or inaugurated today in all three regions and it showed the commitment of the central and the state governments towards the speedy development of the state. On developmental work carried in the country after forming his government, he said 18,000 villages which did not receive power since Independence have been given electrical connectivity within 1,000 days. There are four crore households in the country which do not have electricity even after 70 years of Independence and they will be given power connections within a year and a half, he said.

Modi expressed happiness that he is visiting the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir today.
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