Project to decongest Airport Road, Mohali and Chandigarh-Zirakpur road hits hurdle

Sanjay Bumbroo

Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 10

A 32-km alternative greenfield alignment road to decongest the airport road in Mohali and the Chandigarh-Zirakpur road has hit the roadblock as the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has put the project on hold due to a protest by farmers over the land compensation issue.

The NHAI authorities said the greenfield road would decongest the Chandigarh-Zirakpur road by providing an alternative route to traffic coming from Delhi and going to Jammu and Kashmir, and Himachal Pradesh. The NHAI will acquire about 400 acres in 28 villages. The cost of the project is about Rs700 crore. The NHAI had finalised the company which will carry out the project.

According to sources, the project had been put on hold even though the district administration had written to the NHAI for enhanced compensation. The sources said the amount ranged from Rs 24 lakh per acre to Rs 4.12 crore per acre depending on the land, whether outside the MC limits or inside.

Last year, the NHAI had released Rs 450 crore to acquire 400 acres for a 32-km road, an alternative greenfield alignment, from the IT Chowk (PR-7) near the Chandigarh International Airport to the Kurali-Chandigarh road, crossing the Devi Nagar and Nagiari villages.

Gurdev Singh, District Revenue Officer, said they had written to the NHAI with regard to compensation about three months ago, but they were yet to get a reply.

‘Farmers’ demand financially unviable’

A senior NHAI official said the enhanced compensation demanded by farmers was not financially viable for the NHAI and the project had been put on hold for now. The NHAI had written to the authorities concerned for scrapping the project and their approval was awaited.