India's Modi opens tunnel route to tense China border

Labourers working next to the newly constructed Atal Tunnel on the Leh-Manali highway in Sissu village in Lahaul and Spiti district in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, India. The tunnel is named after India's former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and is reported to be one of India's longest motorable tunnels, at an altitude of over 3,000 metres, and passes under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal mountain range on the Leh-Manali highway. - Reuters

NEW DELHI, Oct 3 (AFP): India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday opened a Himalayan tunnel that will drastically reduce the time needed to rush troops to the country's remote Chinese border as tensions grow between the Asian neighbours.

The tunnel traverses India's northern Himachal Pradesh state and lies on one of two main routes for troops headed to border areas in Ladakh.