The best laid plans of men and mice often go awry. The idea behind constructing the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) highway, also known as the National Capital Territory of Delhi’s Western Peripheral Expressway, was to decongest National Highway-1 in Sonipat, NH-10 in Jhajjar, NH-48 in Gurugram and NH-2 in Palwal districts of Haryana which have proven to be major bottlenecks. It’s been delayed by more than eight years, now.

Of course, officials reassure us that the remaining 83-kilometre stretch between Manesar and Kundli is likely to be operational within the next three months. But the emphasis is on ‘likely’, given that just a few weeks ago Haryana PWD Minister Rao Narbir had said, “The Kundli-Manesar section is in the final phase of construction and the stretch will be opened to traffic by the end of March 2018.” But the ongoing work from Manesar, Pataudi, Farrukhnagar, Jhajjar and towards Kundli is yet to be completed.

On our drive down the KMP Expressway, construction workers complained bitterly about the fact that construction material was not available at the sites on time and that the completion of work on the stretch will take three to six months more than estimated. The other reason behind the project being delayed is that the construction of railway over-bridges (ROBs) and flyovers is yet to be completed. Work on the ROB near Farrukhnagar, for example, was started but then stopped and is yet to resume. Moreover, work on the flyover near Pataudi and overbridges at several locations on the KMP seems to have stalled, intensifying rather than alleviating the traffic logjam. The Expressway will also cross the Gurugram-Rewari railway line near Taj Nagar in Gurugram but the construction of the ROB is yet to start. Remaining construction works from Manesar towards Pachgaon, Paatli, Wazirpur and Farrukhnagar are underway but the pace is slow and the Expressway is less autobahn and more market-meets-works site as of now.

The KMP Expressway also crosses Pachgaon in Gurugram on National Highway 48. However, the vital over-bridge on the stretch has been in a near-complete stage for months now but the “finishing work” is still pending adding to rather than easing traffic snarls. Also, streetlights on the carriageway are not operational yet. Similarly, construction work on the Farrukhnagar-DeverKhana-Dhasa-Badli stretch in Jhajjar district and work on building a flyover over the village of Badhkhalsa towards the GT Road in Sonipat district is underway but incomplete.

Another issue with the KMP Expressway is the chopping and changing of lane plans; the Expressway will now have six lanes instead of the four planned earlier. “Hopefully, the work on the Kundli-Manesar stretch will take off in three months. The 135-kilometer high-speed Expressway will now have six lanes instead of the four planned earlier so there has been some delay but work on the KMP Expressway is now in full swing and we are trying to make it operational soon. It will transform road connectivity,” a senior official with the construction company working on the project told The Pioneer.

The Expressway stretch between Manesar and Palwal on the Expressway became operational in 2015 and has eased traffic greatly but the 135-kilometer stretch which passes through Gurugram, Palwal, Nuh and Sonipat districts is the key to easing the traffic load on the national highways. The plan is to operationalise ten industrial clusters two kilometres from the Expressway on either for the State to take advantage of the national highways the KMP Expressway cuts through.

A total of 35 underpasses and 61 pedestrian crossings are proposed for the Expressway. Once the KMP Expressway is completed and operationalised, vehicles going from North India to the Western and Southern parts of the country would be able to do so without entering into Delhi. It should also reduce travel time from Delhi going West through Haryana considerably.

February 2019 is the deadline for completion of the project. In the interim, rukawat ke liye khed hai sums it up.