PM to lay foundation of Dwarka Expressway soon: Rao Inderjit Singh

Gurgaon Union minister Rao Inderjit Singh said on Friday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will soon lay the foundation stone for the Dwarka Expressway.

Singh, however, did not elaborate when the foundation stone laying event would be held. His announcement comes two days after Union urban development, road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari made a similar announcement in New Delhi.

Gadkari also disclosed the details of the foundation stone ceremony for the Dwarka Expressway while informing the media that the highways ministry is working towards holding a mega event for the inauguration of a stretch of the National Highway - 24 connecting New Delhi, Ghaziabad and the Eastern Peripheral Expressway.

“A consensus was arrived at in the matter (Prime minister laying the foundation stone for the Dwarka Expressway) during a recent meeting chaired by Nitin Gadkari. The road transport and highways minister also said that some technical and land-related issues pertaining to the portion of the expressway falling in New Delhi are in the process of being resolved. Once the issues dogging the expressway project are resolved, the Prime minister will lay the foundation stone for the project,” Singh said.

The Prime minister is expected to arrive in Haryana this month for the inauguration of the Kundil-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) expressway. Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar said as much at Sonepat on February 13.

Inderjit further said that after the foundation stone laying ceremony, PM will also hold a public meeting and efforts are on to organise it.

Singh said that the project is being made at a cost of ₹7,000 crore and the 29km stretch will commence from Kherki Daula toll till the Shiv Murti situated beside the NH-48 in New Delhi.

Of the 29 km, 18.9 km comes within the ambit of Haryana and the remaining 10.1 km falls in New Delhi. The expressway will include a railway over bridge (ROB), 10 underpasses and four interchange junctions at the Shiv Murti, Southern Peripheral Road (SPR), Dwarka and sector 84/88 dividing road in Manesar.

Apart from being a boon for people who have bought properties in residential townships along the expressway, the project will also help Gurgaon residents reach the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi.

“Once the foundation stone is laid, the project will be completed within 2 years and will provide a smooth ride for Gurgaon residents,” Inderjit said.

The Dwarka Expressway project was announced by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (Huda) in 2007. In October 2016, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) took over the project. However, a litigation over land in New Palam Vihar has held up the construction of the expressway since then.

Read I Gurgaon homebuyers demand completion of Dwarka Expressway at earliest

The NHAI is waiting for the land transfer, as its tender to start construction of a 10km elevated road between Delhi border and the Basai railway overbridge is being delayed owing to the delay in land transfer.

With the project hanging fire, thousands of homebuyers, who have invested in residential complexes along the proposed expressway, have been holding protests demanding that the project be put on fast track.

A sizeable contingent of homebuyers, including women children and the elderly, under the banner of DXP Welfare Association, held a protest in Sector 84 on January 20 demanding completion of the Dwarka Expressway project and the relocation of the Kherki Daula Toll plaza.

With the announcement that the PM is likely to lay the foundation stone for the project soon, homebuyers voiced hope that the project will see the light of day at long last.

“Now that it has been announced that the PM will inaugurating the project soon, one would hope that the litigation and other hurdles dogging the project, will be solved by the end of this year. The issue will now get due priority at the highest levels of the government. We are confident that after a wait of more than a decade, the project will finally be a reality,” Yashesh Yadav, president, DXP Welfare Association, said.