India's tunnel sector booms amid ecological and development challenges

As country 'digs deeper', experts stress need for mindful development

Rescue operations at the Telangana tunnel mishap site entered their fourth day on Tuesday. Data shows India has been building more tunnels than ever, even as industry experts suggest that balancing development with ecology remains a challenge.

 

In December, India’s road ministry said that 42 tunnels covering 60.37 kilometre (km) have been completed in relation to national highways to date. It further noted that 57 tunnels covering 93.96 km are currently under implementation — 1.5x the length of the completed stretch.

 

Multiple data points suggest India’s tunnelling industry is at its busiest ever.

 

A Crisil-Ficci report in September said that as urban agglomerations grow and land availability becomes scarce, tunnel construction is becoming a necessary solution.

 

According to the report, of the 25 major tunnel projects in India as of September 2024, all except four are either completed or likely to be completed between 2020 and 2028. The trend is expected to continue, and tunnelling activity is likely to rise in the coming years, the two industry bodies observed.

 

Many of these tunnels under construction are also aiming for various records, including the world’s highest, the world’s longest single-tube road tunnel, and several firsts for India, including underwater and undersea tunnels. 

 

The rapid rise in tunnelling projects has encouraged companies like Welspun Enterprises to narrow their business focus to tunnelling. In a recent call with analysts, company executives outlined a growth strategy for the transportation sector, focusing on build-operate-transfer toll and large-diameter tunnelling. The company envisages a project pipeline of ₹1 trillion in the large-diameter tunnel segment for transportation.

 

India’s largest engineering firm, Larsen & Toubro, along with Adani Group-acquired ITD Cementation, Dilip Buildcon, Kalpataru Projects International, Afcons Infrastructure, and Megha Engineering & Infrastructures, are among those competing in this segment.

 

Other industry estimates suggest that across sectors — roads, water, hydroelectric, and transport — the pipeline for such projects exceeds ₹3.5 trillion.

 

According to projects tracked by India Infrastructure Research, a trade publication, as of May 2024, India has more than 1,470 completed and operational tunnels spanning over 3,400 km. This compares to a pipeline of more than 1,140 tunnels spanning roughly 1,750 km, including planned and under-bidding projects, as of May, according to the same research.

 

A host of factors — higher funding, the availability of better technology, and increasing city congestion demanding tunnel solutions — are at play. Sunil Srivastava, managing director of Balaji Railroad Systems, an engineering and design consulting organisation, said, “As the number of tunnels increases, even if the percentage of risk remains the same, we see a higher number of incidents. Balancing these tunnel developments with ecological realities is a major challenge and, when overlooked, can contribute to mishaps,” adding that across the board, more planning is needed and that all voices from society must be considered to improve risk assessments and prevention.