China has completed the construction of a strategic highway, costing USD 310 million, passing through the Brahmaputra canyon or the Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon- stated to be the world’s deepest gorge with a maximum depth of 6,009 metres.

The highway is close to the Arunachal border and China has completed the construction ahead of its plan to build a mega-dam over the gorge.

State-run Xinhua news agency reported that a 2,114-metre tunnel was dug through on May 15 morning, which marked the completion of the major construction of the 67.22-km road connecting Pad township in the city of Nyingchi and Medog county.

This will cut the travel time by eight hours.

It may be mentioned here that Medog is the last county in Tibet, which is located close to the Arunachal border.

“The new highway was built on the former hiking route between Nyingchi’s Pad township and Baibung township, Medog county, with an altitude difference of up to 2,892 metres between the highest and lowest spots of the road,” Xinhua further reported.

The construction of the highway project began in 2014, with an estimated investment of about USD 310 million.

It may be mentioned here that China has already cleared a plan to build a mega-dam over the Brahmaputra canyon in March this year and this has sparked concerns in India.