The Delhi-Nainital road journey is all set to get shorter with the NHAI on Thursday awarding a Rs 1,335 crore project for four-laning of Rampur-Rudrapur-Kathgodam section of NH-87 to Sadbhav Infrastructure. The section is part of the NH-87 starting from Rampur in Uttar Pradesh and terminating at Karnaprayag in Uttarakhand.

The 93-km project would cover districts of Rampur, Udham Singh Nagar, Nainital and important towns such as Rampur, Bhotbazar, Bilaspur, Rudrapur, Pantnagar, lalkuan, Haldwani and Kathgodam.

NHAI officials said that on completion, the stretch

would save travel time for traffic plying from Delhi to Nainital and beyond in Uttarakhand apart from reducing cost of travel by lowering maintenance and wear and tear cost of vehicles. The road will have three bypasses at Rampur, Bilaspur and Haldwani towns and the entire project, costing Rs 1,335 crore, would be completed in two-and-a-half years.

“Rampur to Rudrapur to Kathgodam on NH-87 connecting Uttar Pradesh to Uttarakhand will be built on BOT (build, operate, transfer) hybrid-annuity mode in two packages which have been cleared by NHAI Board in favour of Sadbhav Infrastructure Project limited at bid price of Rs 1,336 crore,” NHAI official said.

“Four-laning of Rampur-Rudrapur-Kathgodam section would strengthen road infrastructure and serve as an important link to tourist places like Nainital, Kausani, Ranikhet, Mukteswar, Almora etc. This would also give impetus to industrial development as prominent industrial estates at Pantnagar and lalkuan fall on this route,” said a NHAI statement.