Rs133 cr released as land relief for Shimla-Kangra fourlaning

Ravinder Sood

Palampur, July 7

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has released Rs 133 crore as the cost of the land acquired for phase five of the Shimla -Kangra fourlane project between Kachhiyari and Bhangwar.

The Shimla-Kangra road is one of the busiest in the state which links five districts of lower Himachal Chamba, Kangra, Hamirpur, Bilaspur and Solan with the state capital. Being narrow it needs immediate widening and upgrade. Land acquisition is a major hurdle in road construction project in Himachal Pradesh because of high cost of land.

Information gathered today revealed that money has been transferred to the account of respective Competent Authorities for Land Acquisition (CALAs) for further disbursement to the affected parties. CALAs have already called for the bank details, Aadhaar and PAN numbers from the land owners so that money could be transferred to their bank accounts paving way for the construction of road project.

Meanwhile, the state government has directed the HPSEB to shift transmission lines from the 23-km stretch, electricity poles and other standing structures from the acquired land in the next three months. Likewise, the forest department has also been asked to remove standing trees from the land so that the land could be handed over to the construction company for the speedy execution of project.

The state government has also started the land acquisition process for the remaining four phases of this project. Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport and Shipping, reviewed the progress of these project during his visit to the state last month.

The construction work for the four-lane project would be allotted in a phased manner to different companies so that the project was completed without any delay. The NHAI allots projects to the construction companies only after the acquisition of 90 per cent land for the project. After the completion of the four-lane project, distance between Kangra and Shimla will be reduced by 20 km.

The major towns falling between Kangra and Shimla like Daulatpur, Jwalamukhi, Nadaun, Ghumarwin, Darlaghat and Ghannahatti will be bypassed. Ghumarwin town of Bilaspur district will also be kept out of the four-lane project by constructing a six-km bypass. Likewise, congested temple town of Jwalamukhi will also be bypassed by constructing another six-km bypass between Sapri and Nadaun.

It has also been proposed to convert the existing Daulatpur tunnel into a two-way lane.