Haryana gets road projects worth Rs 25,000-cr

Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari sanctions eight new national highways that would pass through Haryana

Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, who visited Haryana today, laid foundation stones of two road projects involving a total investment of Rs 1821.20 crore at Saha in district Ambala and announced that road projects costing Rs 25,000 crore would be initiated in the State by December 2015.

Gadkari also sanctioned eight new national highways that would pass through Haryana and added that ring roads would be constructed for Panchkula-Chandigarh and Mohali, Ambala City as well as Ambala Cantt. and Karnal. In addition, he announced a three kms long elevated highway at Badshahpur in Gurgaon.

The Union minister, who was accompanied by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal, members of parliament, ministers and legislators, laid foundation stones of four laning projects of Yamunanagar-Saha-Barwala section of National Highway No 73 and that of Ambala-Kaithal portion of National Highway No 65.

The Union minister announced to construct a new expressway connecting Haryana, Punjab as well as Jammu and Kashmir. He said that instructions have been issued to prepare a detailed project report for the same.

The eight new national highways announced by the Union Minister included Bhiwani-Mundhal-Jind-Meerut, Hisar-Adampur-Mansa-Bathinda, Jind-Safidon-Panipat, Titram Mod Kaithal-Hisar-Rajgarh Rajasthan Border, Pehowa-Kurukshetra-Yamunanagar, Khangesra-Kala Amb, Yamunanagar-Paonta Sahib and Ambala-Saha-Shahbad.

Gadkari said that during the tenure of Congress government, only a length of two kms of national highways used to be constructed per day, but now in the tenure of BJP, this rate of construction has increased to 14 kms per day.

Therefore, the BJP has speeded up the construction of highways by seven times. He said that in next five years, national highway works costing Rs five lakh crore would be undertaken and it would generate employment opportunities for 50 lakh youth.

He appreciated the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana got initiated by the then Prime Minister Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee adding that out of 6.5 lakh villages in the country, 1.70 lakh were connected under this scheme. Now a maximum number of villages would be benefitted under the scheme.

While referring to the new Land Acquisition Act, he said that some people were misguiding the farmers on the issue and reminded that when the office bearers of Bharatiya Kissan Union had called on Union Rural Development Minister Birender Singh in New Delhi, he had made them understand the Bill and they were satisfied to a great extent.