Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Pema Khandu inaugurated India’s longest 300 mtr single-lane steel cable suspension bridge on 9 January 2019. The bridge across the Siang river at Yingkiong in Upper Siang district has been named Byorung Bridge.
The bridge has been built at a cost of Rs 48.43 crore provided by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, North East India. It will reduce the distance from Yinkiong to Tuting by almost 40 km. The road to Tuting, near the China border in Upper Siang district, was 192 km before the bridge was built.
The bridge is expected to benefit 20,000 people on either banks of the river, besides bolstering the defence preparedness. The CM also laid the foundation stone for a district secretariat building.
The Central government had sanctioned 268 road projects worth Rs 3,800 crore under the Prime Minister’s Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). Upper Siang district has two PMGSY projects sanctioned and were awaiting tender by January-end 2019. The two projects are estimated to cost Rs 124.65 crore. The projects sanctioned are – 35 km road from Paling to Zido for Rs 82.10 crore and 30 km road from Zido to Bishing worth Rs 42.46 crore.