Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar inaugurated the Annual Chief Engineers and Equipment Management Conference of Border Roads Organisation (BRO) in New Delhi on December 27, 2021. Director General Border Roads (DGBR) Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry, Additional Directors General Border Roads and 18 Chief Engineers (Projects) were present on the occasion and will be participating in the three-day conference. The Conference, which is taking place after nearly two years, provides an opportunity for the core group of BRO to discuss key issues focusing on improvement of road infrastructure along the border areas, use of new technology in road construction, incorporation of environment friendly means of construction; road safety aspects and efforts to upgrade facilities for labourers. During the conference, the BRO will also carry out holistic review of the current projects and prepare strategies for the upcoming working season in 2022.In his address, the Defence Secretary commended the BRO for contributing immensely in national building by constructing strategic infrastructure including roads, bridges, tunnels and airfields along the border areas, which has bolstered the operational preparedness and facilitated speedy movement of equipment & personnel to far-flung areas. He lauded the BRO for constructing 102 new roads and bridges connecting remote border areas to the mainland in a single working season, despite challenges posed by inhospitable terrain, inclement weather and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr Ajay Kumar also praised the grit and determination of the BRO personnel for the construction of Umling La Pass, Atal Tunnel & Zojila Pass recently. He lauded the DGBR and all officers & personnel for conducting the breakthrough blast of the Sela Tunnel and speeding up the construction of Nechiphu Tunnel, both part of Balipara-Charduar-Tawang road in Arunachal Pradesh. He said, the BRO is contributing towards realising Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.The Defence Secretary commended the BRO for their efforts to increase the participation of women and appointing them as Officers Commanding of road construction companies along the border areas. He appreciated the creation of an all-women road construction company and women being employed as Casual Paid Labours.Urging the BRO to carry forward their vision, Dr Ajay Kumar suggested them to expedite the work towards sharing their expertise of construction on high-altitude areas with friendly foreign countries. He called upon them to use the International Seminar, being planned on the sidelines of DefExpo-2022, to showcase their capabilities to the international audience.
On the occasion, the Defence Secretary also distributed Best Project, Best Task Force, Best Road & Bridge Construction Company and Best workshop trophies to various units of BRO. He also unveiled a fitness manual ‘Fit BRO Fit India’ for its personnel. The book contains fitness guidelines and protocols prepared for holistic development of body and mind of all ranks and families of BRO. He also launched four software, namely Inventory Management System; BRO Posting Management System; Border Roads Automated HR Management Application (BRAHMA) and BRO Documentation System.Later, Dr Ajay Kumar flagged-in India@75 BRO Motorcycle Expedition which was flagged-off by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh from India Gate, New Delhi on October 14, 2021. 75 BRO personnel participated in the 75-day event. They traversed important passes & places across 24 States and four Union Territories, covering more than 20,000 kms. The aim of the expedition was to deliver a message of national integration, nation building & road safety. To achieve these objectives, the expedition team members conducted numerous public outreach programmes, organised visit to schools and colleges, interacted with BRO/Army Veterans, organised medical camps, visited orphanages and old-age homes and paid homage at War Memorials. The Defence Secretary interacted and praised the members of the team on successfully completing the expedition.