Railway · Defence
The Atal Tunnel, one of the world's longest highway tunnels above 10,000 feet, connects Manali with:
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)View answer ▾Hide ▴
Answer: Option A — Lahaul-Spiti
Detailed Solution
The Atal Tunnel is a highway tunnel built under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range of the Himalaya in Himachal Pradesh. It connects Manali (in Kullu district) with the Lahaul and Spiti valley, on the Manali-Leh highway. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 3 October 2020 and is named after former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who announced the project in 2000.
The tunnel is about 9.02 kilometres long and is located at an altitude of about 3,000 metres (10,000 feet). It is the world's longest highway tunnel above 10,000 feet. It was built by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method. It is a single-tube, double-lane tunnel with an emergency escape tunnel built beneath the main tunnel.
Before the tunnel, the Rohtang Pass, at about 3,978 metres, was closed by heavy snow for about six months every year, cutting off the Lahaul valley from the rest of the country. The tunnel provides all-weather connectivity, reduces the road distance between Manali and Leh by about 46 kilometres and saves about four to five hours of travel time. It is strategically important for the movement of troops and supplies to Ladakh, near the borders with China and Pakistan.
The tunnel is equipped with modern safety features, such as CCTV cameras, fire hydrants, emergency telephones every 150 metres and air quality monitoring.
Other important tunnels in India include:
- Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Tunnel (Chenani-Nashri), Jammu and Kashmir: 9.2 km, opened in 2017.
- Sela Tunnel, Arunachal Pradesh: at about 13,000 feet, the world's longest twin-lane tunnel at that height, opened in 2024.
- Pir Panjal (Banihal-Qazigund) railway tunnel, Jammu and Kashmir: 11.2 km.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Leh is connected to Manali by the highway, but the tunnel itself links Manali with Lahaul-Spiti.
- ✗Kullu district contains Manali itself.
- ✗Shimla is the capital of Himachal Pradesh, not linked by this tunnel.
Quick tip
Remember: Atal Tunnel = under Rohtang Pass, Manali to Lahaul-Spiti, 9.02 km, opened 3 October 2020, built by BRO; Sela Tunnel (Arunachal, 2024); Chenani-Nashri (J&K, 2017).
💬 Discussions on this question
Ask a doubt ›Still stuck on this question? Ask our faculty and fellow students — answers appear here.
Ask a doubtMore Industries & Transport in India Questions
View all ›- Q1.India's first nuclear power plant is:
- Q2.Which is the deepest landlocked and well-protected port in India?
- Q3.The East-West Corridor of the National Highways Development Project connects:
- Q4.India's longest rail-cum-road bridge, connecting Assam and Arunachal Pradesh over the Brahmaputra, is the:
- Q5.Which major port is also known as the 'Gateway of Maharashtra'?
More General Knowledge Questions
- Q1.The techniques of Rasa and Bhava used in Indian classical dance trace their origin to which ancient text?Indian Dance Forms
- Q2.Lavani, Powada, Koli, Waghya Murali and Dhangari Gaja are folk dances of which state?Indian Dance Forms
- Q3.The one-act play associated with the Sattriya tradition of Assam is called:Indian Dance Forms
- Q4.Which dance form of Goa is known as the 'Warrior Dance'?Indian Dance Forms
- Q5.Manipuri dance is based on the Rasleela themes of:Indian Dance Forms
Industries & Transport in India — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Industries & Transport in India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers India's major industries (iron and steel, textiles, cement, sugar, automobiles and information technology) and their locations, along with the transport network: railways, roads and national highways, ports, airports and waterways. Common questions ask where a steel plant is located and which country helped build it (Bhilai with the Soviet Union, Rourkela with Germany and Durgapur with Britain), which city is called the 'Manchester of India', and facts about major ports, railway zones and national highways. Practise the industries and transport questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.