300 National Highway projects on the anvil

In Delhi, the two projects of Peripheral Expressways, comprising the 135 km Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE), and 135 km Western Peripheral Expressway ( WPE), connecting NH-1 and NH-2 from the western and eastern sides of Delhi, have already been completed. The project aims at decongesting the national capital and de-polluting the city by diverting traffic not destined for Delhi through these expressways.

Further, work is progressing swiftly on the DelhiMeerut Expressway that aims to provide a faster connectivity between Delhi and Meerut and beyond this, with Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The 8.36 km stretch of the project from Nizamuddin Bridge to DelhiUP border was inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi in May last year.

Package II from UP border to Dasna (19.28 km), Package Iii—dasna to Hapur (22.27) km— and Package Iv—green-field Alignment from Dasna to Meerut (31.78 km)—are under construction and are likely to be completed by March 2019.

Transport Ministry officials said a number of expressways connecting Delhi to major cities are also in various stages of execution. This includes the 1,250 km long Delhi- Mumbai Expressway which passes through the backward and tribal districts of Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. A sum of Rs 1 lakh crore will be spent on this expressway. It will reduce the distance between Delhi and Mumbai from the present 1,450 km through NH8 to 1,250 km, and the travel time to 12 hours. Greenfield alignment is being explored for the 500 km long proposed Expressway connecting Delhi with Amritsar and Katra.