NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved two major road projects worth Rs 14,114.81 crore, including the construction of a six-lane tunnel linking the Dwarka Expressway with south Delhi and a greenfield access-controlled highway connecting Kanpur and Kabrai in Uttar Pradesh, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
Briefing media after the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Minister asserted that the projects are aimed at easing congestion, improving logistics and accelerating regional economic growth.
While the Delhi tunnel will be developed under the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM), the Kanpur-Kabrai corridor will be executed under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) (Toll) model, the Minister informed.
The project in Delhi involves the construction of an 8.1-km six-lane tunnel on NH-148AE connecting the Shivmurti Interchange on the Dwarka Expressway (NH-248BB) with Nelson Mandela Marg in Vasant Kunj at an estimated cost of Rs 6,969.67 crore.
It is expected to significantly improve connectivity between west and south Delhi by providing seamless access for commuters travelling from Gurugram, Dwarka, Indira Gandhi International Airport and West Delhi. It will also integrate with the proposed elevated AIIMS-Mahipalpur corridor, creating a direct link to the Barapullah elevated road and improving connectivity to east Delhi, Ghaziabad and Noida.
To minimise environmental impact, the tunnel will pass beneath the ecologically sensitive Southern Ridge Forest using tunnel boring machines (TBMs), avoiding large-scale surface disruption.
"The project includes a 3.14-km underground tunnel, approach ramps, elevated stretches and at-grade roads. It also provides for a 1.8-km elevated road along Nelson Mandela Marg, a new flyover towards Mahipalpur and an elevated U-turn to decongest the busy Mahipalpur-Chhatarpur junction,” the minister said.
The government estimates the construction of the Delhi project will generate about 7.54 lakh man-days of direct employment and nearly 9.8 lakh man-days of indirect employment.
Meanwhile, the CCEA also approved the construction of a 117.7-km four-lane access-controlled greenfield highway between Kanpur and Kabrai at a cost of Rs 7,145.14 crore. Designed for future expansion to six lanes, the corridor forms a key segment of the proposed Bhopal-Kanpur Economic Corridor under the National Highways (Original) Programme and will be implemented by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
The project also includes operation and maintenance of the existing Kanpur-Kabrai section of NH-34.
The minister said the proposed highway is designed for speeds of 80-100 kmph and is expected to cut travel time between Kanpur and Kabrai from around three-and-a-half hours to just 90 minutes. He said the project will improve road safety, lower vehicle operating costs and enable faster movement of passenger and freight traffic.
The corridor is expected to strengthen connectivity between Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh by linking industrial and commercial centres with mineral-rich and agricultural regions. It will also improve access to the Kabrai mining belt, facilitating the transport of minerals, construction materials, industrial goods and agricultural produce.
The highway will connect with NH-34, NH-35, the Bundelkhand Expressway, the Kanpur Ring Road and several state highways. It is also expected to improve access to 16 economic nodes, nine social nodes and 10 logistics hubs, including industrial clusters, railway stations and airports across the region.
According to the government, the Kanpur-Kabrai project is expected to generate nearly 1.2 crore person-days of employment during construction. It is projected to handle an Annual Average Daily Traffic of about 18,069 Passenger Car Units by FY29.
The minister said the two infrastructure projects will enhance urban mobility, reduce congestion, improve logistics efficiency and support industrial and economic development across the National Capital Region, Bundelkhand and adjoining parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.