Ludhiana: Finally, elevated highway complete, inclement weather delays opening

Tribune News Service

Nitin Jain

Ludhiana, January 25

Finally, the construction of the much-awaited partially-access controlled four-lane elevated highway corridor in Ludhiana has been completed but the bad weather continuing for the past almost a month now has further delayed the opening of the single remaining stretch, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has said.

With all other three stretches already opened for traffic in phases last year, the only remaining portion of the much-delayed project has also been completed and the final layer of the bitumen premix will be laid once the Sun shows up, officials have claimed.

Even as the NHAI has met the deadline to open the last leg of the elevated highway on Republic Day but the intense cold conditions coupled with dense fog and mist in the absence of any sunny day for the past several days together has delayed the laying of final bitumen premix layer on the remaining 1.5-km stretch.

With the opening of a 2-km-long stretch from Verka Milk Plant to Jagraon Bridge (near Durga Mata Mandir) on November 12 last, three lanes of the Rs 756.27-crore elevated highway have already been put to use so far.

While the 7.4-km first span of the big ticket project had been opened in October last, vehicular movement on the remaining 5.55-km stretch of the entire 12.95-km-long highway will be allowed by January 26, officials have revealed.

The development assumes significance as the work on one of the busiest arteries of the Maximum City has missed five deadlines of completion in April 2020, June 30, July 31, September 30 and December 31, 2023.

Started in October 2017, the construction of the elevated highway between the busy Samrala Chowk and Ludhiana municipal limits on the NH-95 is now scheduled to complete in all respects by next month.

Rajya Sabha MP from Ludhiana Sanjeev Arora, who reviewed the progress of the project here on Thursday, told The Tribune, that he, along with NHAI project director Ashok Rolaniya visited the elevated highway stretch between Bharat Nagar Chowk and ISBT to see the progress of the ongoing work.

Arora was briefed by Rolaniya that the work was complete and bituminous work on about 1.5-km stretch was pending. He said the contractor was ready to complete the work as soon as the Sun shines.

He said due to long-stretched inclement weather, the balance work could not be carried out at the moment.

The RS MP said the pending work would be undertaken as and when the weather clears and it would require only a single day to complete the job provided a clear sunshine, which was expected anytime within the next week.

Pertinently, the 7.4-km three spans of the elevated highway from Bhaiwal Chowk to the MC limits, Verka Milk Plant to Jagraon Bridge (near Durga Mata Mandir), and its opposite side from Bhaiwal Chowk to Bharat Nagar Chowk (railway station side), were already opened for traffic so far, while the remaining fourth span towards the ISBT side was awaiting the final touches.

The parliamentarian was apprised that all finishing touches were being given to the remaining portions of the elevated highway.

Arora said local residents, especially commuters, would get a sigh of relief after the project was fully completed in the coming period. He said the opening of the complete project would prove a boon for the commuters as it would not only reduce time of travel and fuel cost but also help in minimising pollution levels and rate of accidents in the city.

“I’m happy that my efforts were leading to completion of the project,” he said, adding that he would make sure that the project was fully completed and dedicated to the public at the earliest possible.

The NHAI project director told Arora that the recent delay in completion of the remaining stretches was caused due to bad weather only.

Arora, who took a test drive on the completed first span of the highway, was apprised by the NHAI officials that 220 men, 10 cranes, two overhead gantry, a batch-mix plant, seven hydra and transit mixers had been pressed into service to further escalate the pace of the ongoing work.

The MP urged the team of the officials concerned, led by the NHAI Project Director, to finish the balance work within the minimum possible time to complete the project.

“The NHAI team is working hard day and night. Even the NHAI has made arrangements for additional machinery to carry on the construction work without any interruption, if the existing machinery gets faulty,” he said.

Arora, who had recently called on the NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav to press for the early completion of the project, said he had been told that there would be four slip roads —one each near Verka Plant, PAU, Bhai Bala Chowk and Hotel Park Plaza — on the elevated highway. There would also be a provision for the vehicular traffic to move towards the bus stand and Shri Durga Mata Mandir, the MP was further apprised.

The Rajya Sabha member said the NHAI officials had also made an appeal to the public to follow guidelines of the NHAI and not to exceed the speed of their vehicles above the permissible limit of 80 kmph on the elevated highway.

“I have observed that all norms with regard to the quality standards are being strictly followed by the NHAI in completing the project,” Arora said while patting the back of the official machinery for putting in best efforts to bring the project to the advanced stage of completion.

Major demand met: MP

“With the completion of the elevated highway, one of the major demands of Ludhiana residents has been met. It will give a major reprieve to commuters on one of the busiest arteries in the city. It has been made possible after I took up the issue with Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari and NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav,” said Sanjeev Arora, RS MP.

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