pithoragarh union defence minister rajnath singh on friday inaugurated via videoconferencing the strategically important and muchawaited 78kmlong tawaghatlipulekh road popularly known as kailash mansarovar road that will connect dharchula to lipulekh pass on the china border in pithoragarh districtthe key road is expected to provide muchneeded leverage to the armed forces in augmenting defence systems near the border besides once thrown open to the public it will also help cut down travel time significantly for pilgrims taking part in the kailash mansarovar yatra in fact singh said at the inauguration that pilgrims going to kailash mansarovar will now be able to complete their journey by road in one week instead of up to three weekslater in a tweet he congratulated the border roads organisation bro for completing the road which is at a height of over 17000 feet even as the covid19 pandemic is raging all around he also flagged off a convoy of vehicles from pithoragarh to gunji via videoconferencing vimal goswami chief engineer of hirak project bro said that the 78km road from ghatiyabagar to lipulekh has been constructed at a cost of rs 408 crore the toughest 17km stretch between najang to bundi took two years to complete due to road cutting work in a very difficult terrain and harsh weather conditions he addedwhile inaugurating the road the defence minister said that apart from its strategic importance it will also have a religious and economic significance tourism healthcare and education facilities will also flourish in the area and local villagers will gain from it with this road the kailash mansarovar yatra from the lipulekh side will now be 84 in india and only 16 in china by road earlier the yatra was 80 by road in china and only 20 in india he said adding that the travel time will reduce significantly and can be goswami added that the landscape of the road is beautiful and unique it starts at an altitude of 6000 feet and after crisscrossing several valleys meadows mountains and passing through bridges the road ends at a height of 17060 feet he addedwith inputs from pti