NEW DELHI: Ahead of the proclamation of Delhi elections, Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday announced four new highway projects for Delhi and adjoining areas, entailing an investment of Rs 12,500 crore to address the problem of traffic congestion and air pollution. He also announced approval of Rs 1,200 crore from Central Road and Infrastructure Fund (CRIF) for the national capital.
While Gadkari's announcements came a day after seven Delhi BJP MPs submitted these demands, one of these projects, a tunnel from Shiv Murti to Nelson Mandela Marg was approved earlier and preparatory works have started. The proposal of providing connectivity from Urban Extension Road (UER) II to Delhi-Katra Expressway via KMP Expressway was first taken up by Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini with Gadkari after the state elections.
Announcing the decisions, the minister said: "This will reduce pressure of burden of vehicles coming from outside Delhi."
Giving details, Gadkari said the 20-km link from UER-II to Delhi-Katra Expressway via KMP expressway will cost around Rs 2,500 crore. This will provide direct connectivity for vehicles coming from J&K and Punjab to IGI airport and Delhi-Mumbai Expressway.
Another 17-km link will be built connecting UER-II at Alipur with Delhi-Dehradun Expressway at Tronica City in Ghaziabad with an investment of Rs 2,200 crore. This will provide direct connectivity for vehicles coming from Rajasthan and Haryana to Dehradun.
The third project is a 35-km link from Delhi-Dehradun Expressway to Noida, which will work as a bypass for East Delhi. This will cost about Rs 4,400 crore.
The fourth project is 5-km tunnel from Shiv Murti on Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway to Nelson Mandela Road and this will cost Rs 3,500 crore.
Gadkari said Delhi being the capital of the country, govt has taken several steps to address the traffic congestion and air pollution. Projects worth around Rs 60,000 crore has been rolled out in the Delhi and adjoining areas.