IL&FS Transport is the top gainer on the BSE right from the opening bell. The stock spurted up almost 9% to Rs.97.30 and currently quoted at Rs.95 levels, up around 6%. Its 52-week high is at Rs.124.80 and low is at Rs.65.85.

The reason for this euphoria – the company has won the contract for building the the Zojila tunnel, which will be an engineering and building challenge given the extremely treacherous terrain. This tunnel will connect Srinagar to Leh throughout the year; the connectivity shuts down during winters and remains intermittent during monsoon on account of landslides. The tunnel is to be built at an altitude of 3,528 meters.

It was a foregone conclusion that IL&FS would win this contract as it was the lowest bidder at Rs.4849 crore, which is 14% lower than Govt reserve price of Rs.5630 crore. Other contenders were Reliance Infra, JP Ventures and L&T.