Kargil war ammo mostly passed via Zojila

NEW DELHI: In May 1999, the Indian Army had a war to fight — to evict Pakistani Army troops occupying several peaks on the Indian side of the Line of Control in Mushkoh, Drass, Kargil and Batalik — all located east of the Zojila on the Indian side of the Line of Control (LoC).

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 19

In May 1999, the Indian Army had a war to fight — to evict Pakistani Army troops occupying several peaks on the Indian side of the Line of Control in Mushkoh, Drass, Kargil and Batalik — all located east of the Zojila on the Indian side of the Line of Control (LoC).

The Kargil conflict ensued in the summer of 1999. The Army needed to move machines and ammunition across Zojila, an 11,500-ft-high mountain pass through which meanders an important road link between Kashmir and Kargil-Ladakh.

The pass, located some 130 km east of Srinagar, is closed for six months. It normally opens in May-end after an engineering effort by snow-cutters.

Former Army Chief General VP Malik (retd), in his book ‘Kargil: From surprise to victory’, describes the importance of Zojila: “More than 19,000 tonne of ammunition was moved, mostly across Zojila.”

To put it in perspective, a truck can carry 8-10 tonne of ammo. It was done in summer, but in winter, the pass is under 20 ft of snow.

Prime Minister Modi on Saturday laid a plaque to begin work on the 14-km-long Zojila tunnel at a cost of Rs 6,800 crore. It promises to provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar-Kargil and Leh. It will cut down the time taken to cross the Zojila from the present three-and-a-half hours to just 15 minutes.

Zojila’s military importance was first felt in 1948 during the first India-Pak war. Code-named Operation Bison, it was a defining tank battle to evict the Pakistan Army, which had moved in from Skardu-Drass axis to capture Zojila in February 1948.

Stuart Tanks of the 7 Cavalry led the charge along with the infantry following closely to clear the vital mountain pass. It was finally re-captured in November 1948. Any hesitation to tackle Zojila at this juncture would have resulted in the loss of Leh and Ladakh.

Without tunnels, the summer months are crucial as the road is used for stocking up food items, LPG cylinders, medicines, clothing, shoes etc, besides the Army’s own movement and the road-opening teams.

During the winters, Army equipment and men can only be moved on board the daily flights of IL-76 from Chandigarh and in case of a war-like scenario, the air effort was the only option.

COST Rs 6,800 CRORE

VITAL PASS AT 11,500 FEET

Zojila links Kashmir with Kargil-Ladakh
130 km east of Srinagar
6 months closed during winter and opens in May-end after an engineering effort by snow-cutters

THE TUNNEL

Length: 14 km

Target: All-weather connectivity between Srinagar-Kargil and Leh

Relief: Will bypass Zojila and travel time will come down from 3.5 hours to 15 minutes