how was the 200 metre stretch of old Hindustan Tibet road national Highway 22 damage
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The Hindustan-Tibet road is commonly referred to as one of the most dangerous roads in the world. | Source
The Hindustan-Tibet Road Connects Communities to Trade
While traveling along the Hindustan-Tibet Road, I was astonished by the sheer amount of effort that was put into its construction. It is incredible that they built the road with hand tools, without the help of modern machines.
Construction of the Hindustan-Tibet road in Himachal Pradesh began in 1850. It was quite the challenge, as it is located on one of the highest mountain ranges in the world.
The half-tunnels, manually carved through rocky cliffs, speaks volumes of the determination and dedication that the workers who built the highway had. The tunneling through the huge rocks at "Khimring Dhankh", a cliffy region of the the Hindustan-Tibet road, is still considered to be the largest stretch of rock tunneling for a road.
This 500-km road, stretching from Ambala to Kaurik, is often erroneously called National Highway No. 22 (NH 22). It passes through the foothills of the Shivalik Range, Shimla, Kingal and then runs along the Satluj Rive and passes through Rampur, Poari, and Pooh. From Khab to Sumdo, the road runs along the Spiti River. The 335-km stretch from Kalka to Wangtu, is under the control of the Himachal Pradesh Public Works Department, while from Wangtu to Korik, it is under Border Roads Organisation's jurisdiction.
The road once connected the formerly princely state of Rampur Bushair, the main entry point to Tibet. Over the years, however, it fell into disuse and was abandoned due to strained relations with China.
The road is gaining attention as a reliable alternative to NH 22 so that the local economy and trade with Tibet—through the Shipki La border post on the Indo-China border—could be revived.
That is why the road is now being repaired and reconstructed—the strata of the Hindustan-Tibet road is more stable than NH 22.
The Route of the Hindustan-Tibet Road
This road has been featured on the History Channel as one of the “deadliest roads” in the world. Built in the 19th century, the Hindustan-Tibet road, also known as the Silk route, begins from Ambala in Haryana as an offshoot of National Highway 1.
It runs through Punjab for 40 km in a section known as Ambala Chandigarh Expressway. From Chandigarh, it runs north towards Zirakpur and meets NH 64. Thereafter, it goes to Panchkula-Pinjore-Kalka and then enters Himachal Pradesh at Parwanoo.
With the change in the terrain, it becomes a mountainous road full of hairpin bends and continues north-east up to Solan and then goes northwards to Shimla. There, it joins NH 88, where it repeatedly crisscrosses the Kalka-Shimla railway, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. From Shimla, it heads northeast towards the Tibetan frontier.
About 569 km from Delhi and 28 km from Sangla, the Chitkul village in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh is the last inhabited village on the Indian section of this road before the Tibet border.
The road passes through the border town Khab and then runs for a short distance through Namgyal up to the Shipki La pass, where it ultimately enters Tibet. The Indian section of the road ends at the Line of Actual Control.
In reality, the road does not lead to the actual border. It ends about 90 km before the border—the rest of the road is under the control of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, the Indian paramilitary force guarding the frontiers.