23 august 2024 : The Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway, which is one of the flagship projects of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), is almost complete in most states except Punjab.
With 273 km of the total 669 km four-lane access-controlled highway — with a route alignment connecting Jasaur Kheri in Jhajjar near Delhi with Katra north of Jammu city — already complete, most of the 362 km stretch falling under the jurisdiction of Punjab is still incomplete.
This has been detailed in the report on the project prepared by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH). The report will be presented before Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the review of the NHAI projects on August 28.
The MoRTH has also put it on record that the delay in the completion of the expressway has led to the escalation of project cost from Rs 25,000 crore to Rs 38,905 crore, a rise of 55.62 per cent.
Caught up in the land acquisition hurdles, this expressway is now scheduled to be completed by 2026.
On July 15, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari had reviewed the status of the stalled NHAI projects in Punjab.
According to the presentation, a copy of which is with The Tribune, the physical progress of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway has been the most dismal, ranging from a dismal 3 per cent to a high of 90 per cent for multiple packages and spurs, 11 of which fall within Punjab.
The progress report revealed that Package 1 has achieved 86.34 per cent physical progress, Package 2 82.05%, Package 3 83.76%, Package 4 79.95%, Package 5 56.02%, Package 6 89.98%, Package 7 75.87%, Package 8 23.06%, Package 9 47.2%, Package 10 46.52%, Package 11 34.45%, Package 12 3.58%, Package 14 45%, Package 15 59.02%, package 16 50.11%, Package 17 10.96% and Package 18 4.59%; while Spur 1 has moved 6.58 per cent, Spur 2 and 3 have progressed 13.8 per cent each
The revised target dates fixed by the NHAI showed that Packages 1 and 2 are likely to be built by August 31, while Packages 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, and 10 have also missed their March 31 deadline. For Packages 11 to 18, December 31, 2025, is the fresh deadline.