Rs 804 cr disbursed as land compensation in NH projects in Himachal: CM

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has said a sum of Rs 804 crore has been disbursed as land compensation in various national highway projects within a month in the state.

The chief minister stressed on completion of the disbursement process of the remaining compensation cases worth about Rs 750 crore by March 27, 2023.

He was reviewing the progress of various ongoing National Highway (NH) projects in the state focusing on resolving issues related to land compensation, clearances of FRA (Forest Rights Act) and FCA (Forest Conservation Act) and other bottlenecks of the projects on Sunday, a release issued here said.

As the roads are the lifeline of Himachal Pradesh, the state government has been working diligently to ensure the timely completion of national highway projects, he said.

The state government's efforts to expedite the land compensation and other clearances process would facilitate smoother implementation of the projects and provide better road connectivity to the people as well as tourists visiting the state.

Sukhu directed the officers to expedite the FRA-FCA clearance cases, by monitoring the cases every 15 days. He said that a follow-up review meeting would be held on March 27 to assess the progress made in these matters.

He also reviewed the progress of the Shimla-Matour Road, Pathankot-Mandi road, Shimla bypass and Pinjor-Baddi-Nalagarh road and gave necessary directions to accelerate these projects.

The chief minister said that a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Bihru-Lathiani road worth Rs 900 crore was submitted to the Centre on February 20, 2023 and the project is expected to be approved by the end of this month.

In addition to this, the DPR for the Sainj-Luhri-Jalori road is expected to be completed by March 31. A consultant has also been appointed for the construction of Jalori tunnel, whereas the process of construction for the road from Nalagarh-Swarghat, Una bypass and Punjab border to Nadaun has also been initiated, he said.