Government approves Rs 2,070-crore highway project in Punjab

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet today approved a Rs 2,070-crore highways project in Punjab under its hybrid annuity mode to ensure faster movement of traffic between Chandigarh and Ludhiana.

"The project is part of Chandigarh-Ludhiana section. Six/ four laning of Kharar to Ludhiana section of NH 95 (New NH 5) has been approved by the Cabinet," Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said after the Cabinet meeting.

The 76-km highway stretch will be constructed at a cost of Rs 2,069.70 crore and land required for it is 383.22 hectare, majority of which has been acquired and remaining 145 hectares will be acquired soon, he added.

The highway at present is only two-lane.

The project is scheduled to be completed in 30 months, the minister said adding, out of the total, 54 km will be widened to six lane and the remaining 22 km will broadened to four lanes.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had in 2006 approved the Chandigarh-Ludhiana section of NH 21 and NH 95 through public-private-partnership (PPP) on build, operate, transfer (BOT) basis under NHDP Phase V.

The project was later reconstructed in two parts -- Chandigarh-Kharar and Kharar-Ludhiana -- due to non-viability.

The Chandigarh-Kharar section has already been awarded on engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) mode.

Under the project, two major and one minor bridges are proposed besides a 7.9 km bypass at Samrala.

Under the hybrid annuity mode, the government provides 40 per cent of the cost to the developer while the remaining 60 per cent has to be borne by concessionaires.