Description : The early years post Independence saw India with a 15000 kilometers long border to be secured and a vast, remote and economically backward North and North Eastern Region, with an inadequate road communication network, to support its future development.



The 1950’s was one of consolidation and learning, politically and militarily. With the advent of the Five Year Plans from 1951, the Central and State Government stepped in. With the Constitution having declared road development as a State subject , the responsibility of road development continued in the North and North Eastern States to be entrusted to the PWD, even where defence strategy was involved.



However, what become apparently clear was that, the roads for the Border States were forbidding challenges, needing dedicated commitment, time and money, to open up the hinterland to the out side world, through a network of roads and air strips, as a committed National effort.



It was, therefore, in 1960, that the need for a single executive body for road development in the remote North and North Eastern Regions of the country was strongly felt. Thus, on 29 Mar 60, the Border Roads Development Board, as an inter-ministerial body was set up, under the Chairmanship of the then Prime Minister, Late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, to co-ordinate an economically viable Plan, for the expeditious execution of roads and other development projects, aimed at primarily enhancing the defence potential and at the same time accelerating the economic development of the North and North Eastern Border States.



Under the inspired leadership, visionary zeal, far sightedness and personal involvement of Late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was born the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) on 07 May 60, as a road construction executive force, partly integral to and in support of the Army and primarily conceived to meet its strategic requirements. Headed by a Director General Border Roads (DGBR), as the Executive Head, it provided a General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF), as the execution force, under the Ministry of Surface and Transport, to build and maintain roads, through an establishment of Chief Engineer Projects. The GREF was a unique force, conceived as an unarmed, civilian Organisation but uniformed, modeled and trained on a military pattern.