The Noida Authority has planned an anti-encroachment drive for freeing the 17-km stretch of the Faridabad-Noisda-Ghaziabad (FNG) Expressway, in order to expedite project work.
The authority has written to the police seeking adequate force to reclaim the land from unauthorised constructions and infringements. In a meeting, it was decided that illegally acquired land in Chijarsi, Gadhi, Bahlolpur, Chaukhandi and other regions would be reclaimed.
Earlier, encroachers had moved Allahabad High Court against the drive but the plea was not entertained.
More than 50 per cent of work of the eight-lane stretch in Noida has been completed. The authority also plans an elevated road near Chijarsi to connect NH-24 to Ghaziabad, as land along the proposed highway has been completely encroached.
The link road will help commuters to reach Faridabad and Ghaziabad without having to enter Delhi or crowded parts of Noida. The expressway begins at Chijarsi village near National Highway 24 and passes through Sectors 142, 143 B, 167 and 168 along the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway, to end at Assdullapur village near Sector 168.
The project was announced 20 years ago, but scrapped by the Haryana Government in 1998. According to the initial plan, the corridor was to be 56 km long and connect NH-24 and NH-2 but later, it was cut down to 17 km.
Around 16 km of the corridor falls under Noida Authority's jurisdiction, which has also proposed a bridge over the Yamuna to connect Noida and Faridabad.
“As included in the Master Plan, we have decided to construct the highway within the next two to three years. We have served notices to the squatters and we have asked Noida Police for adequate force to initiate the anti-encroachment drive. We are also trying to acquire land from farmers to complete the project as soon as possible,” said PK Agarwal, additional CEO of Noida Authority.