Sohna, Haryana:: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday assured that the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway will be completed in two years.
“Delhi-Katra expressway is being constructed at a cost of Rs 47,000 crore. The expressway will reduce commute time to six hours and shorten the distance to 572 km from 747 km. I assure the project will be completed in two years,” Gadkari said while addressing the media here after taking stock of the ongoing construction work of the Delhi-Mumbai expressway here.
Gadkari visited Sohna, as part of his two-day inspection programme of the 1,380 km long expressway, covering the states of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, which is being constructed at a cost of Rs 98,000 crore.
During the visit, he was accompanied by Union Minister of Corporate Affairs Rao Inderjit Singh and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
It will be an important road for pilgrimage visiting Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine, Katra (Jammu and Kashmir), he added.
On Delhi-Mumbai expressway, the Union Minister said, “Delhi-Mumbai expressway will be the world’s largest expressway. It is a matter of pride for our country.” It will be the longest expressway in the history of the country, he added.
The expressway will bring economic prosperity and development to the states of Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, Gadkari stated.
In Haryana, 160 km of the total expressway passes through the state and the section is being built at a cost of more than Rs 10,400 crore with contracts for 130 km already awarded, he informed.
Gadkari further said, “A six-lane DND from Faridabad-Ballabgarh connecting to the Delhi-Mumbai expressway will be made at the cost of Rs 5,000 crore. With this 60 km long road, Ashram, Badarpur, Faridabad will see ease in traffic and pollution in Delhi will come down.”
Haryana CM Khattar said around 73 villages under Palwal, Nuh and Gurugram districts will be benefited from this expressway as it will create new employment opportunities.
The expressway is expected to halve the commute time between Delhi and Mumbai from nearly 24 hours to 12 hours and shorten the distance by 130 km.
The foundation stone of the project was laid in 2019.
UNI
