Parliament panel pulls up BRO over NE roads

New Delhi, May 2: A parliamentary panel has pulled up the Border Roads Organisation over lack of road connectivity to Tawang, near the Chi border, saying that in case of war, the Indian Army would not be able to reach there in a day while the "neighbouring country" would only take a few hours. The panel also expressed concern over "outdated" equipment used by the BRO, saying an upgradation was needed to compete with neighbouring countries, especially Chi. Parliament's standing committee on defence, in a recently-tabled report, said it was "dismayed to note that in Tawang area, the situation is very critical in so far as connectivity is concerned. While our neighbouring country can reach the border within two or three hours, our army takes more than a day to reach there. This is a matter of great concern with regard to our defence preparedness."