In Ladakh, the Border Roads Organisation’s (BRO) Project Vijayak in Kargil has successfully utilized the indigenous REJUPAVE road construction technology. Developed by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Road Research Institute (CSIR-CRRI), under the Ministry of Science and Technology, REJUPAVE was used to construct high-altitude bituminous roads in low and sub-zero temperatures on the Drass-Umbala-Sankoo Road, located in Drass, the world’s second coldest inhabited place.

REJUPAVE, an innovative asphalt modifier derived from biomass and renewable resources, lowers the heating requirements for bituminous mixes and maintains their temperature during transit. This technology was previously implemented by BRO to build road sections at the world’s highest Sela road tunnel and the LGG-Damteng-Yangste (LDY) road section near Arunachal Pradesh’s China border at 18,000 feet. Now, it has been successfully tested on the Drass-Umbala-Sankoo Road at an altitude of 13,000 feet.

M/s Verma Industries technology partner of CSIR CRRI has supplied the REJUPAVE to Project Vijayak BRO for this technology trial.

The principal scientist and inventor of REJUPAVE, Satish Pandey, explained that the technology not only facilitates road construction in cold temperatures but also reduces greenhouse gas emissions, aiding the preservation of eco-sensitive areas like Ladakh. Roads built with REJUPAVE in cold climates will exhibit improved durability and resistance to Low Temperature Cracking.

Lt Col Divyankit Nainwal Officer Commanding 55 RCC of Project Vijayak said that REJUPAVE reduces the production and rolling temperatures of bituminous mixes by 30-40 degrees Celsius, with negligible heat loss during transit.

This technology extends the operational window for agencies such as BRO, PWD, and NHDICL, enabling them to construct robust road networks more rapidly in challenging conditions like those in Drass.