24x7 Atal Tunnel: Siemens has its task cut out
The 9.02-km-long Atal Tunnel, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, is not only the longest facility at such an altitude but is also a technological marvel. And, among others who participated in making the tunnel at an elevation of around
3,100 m (10,000 ft), global tech giant Siemens had a big role to play.
The responsibility to keep the horseshoe shaped, singletube, double lane tunnel with a roadway of 8 metres running through the year also lies with Siemens. The firm’s technology will provide electrification, digitalisation solutions for local and remote monitoring, connectivity, lighting, ventilation, power distribution, and fire safety systems.
Sunil Mathur, managing director of the firm, said the tunnel has a fault-tolerant automation system, which would minimise the probability of a production failure to “nearly nil”.
Mathur said the company’s global expertise, local competence, and technical know-how make it a partner for all stakeholders — manufacturers, designers, system integrators, and operators — and that is the firm’s “biggest differentiator”.
The Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had decided to construct the tunnel below the Rohtang Pass on June 3, 2000, as the Lahul valley used to be cut off for about six months every year due to heavy snowfall. The tunnel, built by the Border Roads Organisation at a cost of about ~3,300 crore, is significant from the point of view of the country's defence as it would make movement of weapons and ration easier, and would also ease deployment of soldiers.
According to Mathur, since the tunnel cuts the travel time between Manali and Leh by 4-5 hours and shortens the distance by over 45 km, it is likely to witness heavy traffic, so checking pollution and injecting fresh air would a priority for the firm.
Continuous monitoring of the health of fire detection systems from the firm would help the eight control rooms in the tunnel ensure there is no closure of the tunnel. For safety, the tunnel has exits at every 500 m.
Siemens feels that overcoming the challenge of design and engineering is key to any project. “Every tunnel project is a challenge in terms of design and engineering. Many different disciplines and departments have to be coordinated, and the design process must be cost-optimised. This is where Siemens’ automation and digitalisation offers many benefits including optimising the design, engineering, commissioning, operation, service, safety and modernisation,” Mathur said.
The Modi government had decided to name the Rohtang Tunnel as Atal Tunnel in December to honour the former prime minister.
The tunnel is significant from the point of view of the country’s defence as it would make movement of weapons and ration easier, and would also ease deployment of soldiers