PM Modi inaugurates Dwarka Expressway in Haryana. How will it help commuters?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the Haryana section of India’s inaugural 8-lane segment of the Dwarka Expressway, spanning 19 km and constructed at a cost of ₹4,100 crore. It aims to improve traffic flow and ease congestion between Delhi and Gurugram on the National Highway (NH)-48.

This segment encompasses a 10.2 km stretch from the Delhi-Haryana Border to Basai Rail-over-Bridge (ROB) and an 8.7 km section from Basai ROB to Kherki Daula. The road will connect directly between the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi and the Gurugram Bypass.

“Today is an important day for connectivity across India. At around 12 noon today, 112 National Highways, spread across different states, will be dedicated to the nation or their foundation stones would be laid. The Haryana Section of Dwarka Expressway will be inaugurated. These projects will boost economic growth and are also in line with our efforts to build next-generation infrastructure,” PM Modi wrote on X, sharing pictures of the Dwarka expressway just before the inauguration.

Dwarka Expressway

• The Dwarka Expressway, with a construction cost of ₹9,000 crore, is divided into four segments. The third and fourth sections, spanning approximately 19 km, are in Gurugram, while the initial two segments, totalling 10 km, are located in Delhi.
• Originating from Shiv Murti near Mahipalpur on the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway, the newly constructed road traverses through Dwarka Sector 21, the Gurugram border, Basai, and concludes near Kherki Daula on the national highway. It will be an entirely access-controlled, grade-separated 14-lane Expressway, a pioneering initiative in the country.
• It will feature four multi-level interchanges, including tunnels or underpasses, a ground-level road section, an elevated flyover, and a flyoverabove the initial flyover.
• The state-of-the-art highway will feature an 8-lane elevated structure alongside India’s first 4 km long 8-lane tunnel near IGI airport. According to The Times of India, it is described as a ‘shallow tunnel’, indicating that it does not penetrate deeply or require tunnel boring machines. The tunnel construction became imperative due to the impossibility of erecting an elevated structure close to the airport.
• The starting point of the Dwarka Expressway will be an interchange comprising two underpasses beneath the existing NH 48, integrated with an elevated corridor.
• According to government data, NH 48 witnesses the passage of over 3 lakh vehicles daily. The expressway construction aims to alleviate traffic congestion, minimise productivity losses caused by traffic jams, and reduce vehicular pollution in the Delhi NCR region.
• Construction on the Dwarka Expressway commenced in 2018, initially slated for completion by 2021. However, project deadlines were extended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The National Highways Authority India of (NHAI) has announced that work on the entire project will be concluded by August this year.

(With inputs from Press Information Bureau)