In a move to provide a new link road connecting Ring Road and Mathura Road, the Centre has decided to sanction Rs 700 cr for construction of three tunnel links underneath the Bhairon Marg.
The first tunnel road will connect Pragati Maidan (from near the middle of the Bhairon Marg) to Ring Road, and the second one will link Pragati Maidan to Mathura Road near Purana Quila. The third tunnel will connect Mathura Road to Ring Road. When completed, this would give a huge relief to commuters who use Bhairon Marg to reach Ring Road. It is also expected that these tunnel will ease traffic jam at ITO, Mandi House, Tilak Marg, Mathura Road and Pragati Maidan. The Prime Minister Office (PMO) wants this project to be completed by 2019.
A traffic police report says over 5,00,000 vehicles pass through the ITO crossing and Bhairon Marg near Pragati Maidan every day.
Top sources said that Cabinet Secretary PK Sinha will convene a high-level meeting with all stakeholders, including Railways, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and Delhi Government’s Public Works Department, on Friday to sort out issues such as acquisition of land, environment clearance, and approval from ASI on this project.
The construction of three tunnels will be executed by the Delhi Government’s PWD. “The Ministry will provide Rs 700 crore to the Delhi Government for completion of the project,” said an official.
“Delhi Government has recently appointed a consultant to conduct feasibility study in this regard,” said the sources. These roads are likely to be short — each around 1 kilometre to 2.5 kilometres in length — to make them cost-effective and allow motorists to use them as soon as possible.
Explaining the details of the project, the officer added, “Traffic going to High Court or India Gate from Pragati Maidan will take a loop in front of the fort and cross via a tunnel that will open up close to the High Court.
“Once construction starts in around six months’ time, massive traffic disruption can be expected,” he said.
last month, The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved a proposal for redevelopment of the Pragati Maidan. The iconic structures at national Capital’s Pragati Maidan will be razed to make way for a world-class Centre. The total cost of the redevelopment is Rs 2,254 crore.
As per proposal, the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), will utilise Rs 1,200 crore out of its free reserves towards funding of the project. The ITPO will raise institutional loan/soft loan/external aid/land monetisation for the balance amount of Rs 1,054 crore with the Government guarantee for the amount of institutional loan.
The redevelopment of Pragati Maidan is planned in two phases. In phase-I reconstruction will be completed by May 2019, resulting in redevelopment of nearly 3.26 lakh sq. metres. After the redevelopment, the exhibition space will be doubled to 1.19 lakh square metre as against 65,000 square metre currently. The redevelopment will also include creation of a state-of-the-art Convention Centre with seating capacity of 8,000 people.