Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has announced that travel time between Delhi and Haridwar can be reduced to just 1.5 hours once the upcoming road project opens for public use next month. According to reports from The Economic Times, Gadkari made this announcement at the Confederation of Indian Industry's (CII) National Conference on 'Highways of India's Future: Smart, Safe and Sustainable' on Tuesday. The minister emphasized that the central government's infrastructure push is helping reduce travel time to religious places while simultaneously boosting tourist traffic and creating employment opportunities. Gadkari cited examples of successful road projects, noting that travel time between Delhi and Meerut has been reduced from three-and-a-half to 40-50 minutes, and the recently opened Delhi-Dehradun corridor has brought down travel time between the two cities from seven hours to merely two hours.
The minister highlighted significant improvements in religious tourism infrastructure, stating that traffic to Char Dham has increased three times thanks to the Char Dham road project. As reported by Economic Times, Gadkari explained that 80-85% of the project has been completed, and traffic from Delhi to Badrinath and Kedarnath has increased substantially. He also mentioned road development projects in Maharashtra and Ayodhya, including the Pandharpur Palkhi Marg projects, noting that similar infrastructure improvements are being implemented across the country. Gadkari emphasized the economic impact, stating that 49% of capital expenditure is in tourism, making these projects crucial for employment generation and boosting the economy.
The Indian government plans to invest over ₹7 lakh crore in infrastructure projects, including highways and tunnels, as announced by Gadkari. According to The Economic Times, this massive investment is expected to significantly improve connectivity and reduce logistics costs across the country. The minister highlighted that increased road connectivity has led to a significant rise in tourist traffic at religious destinations, with the economic impact being substantial. Gadkari emphasized the importance of quality in highway construction and stated that poor-performing contractors would face consequences, while noting ongoing efforts to improve connectivity through various projects.
Addressing highway construction quality issues, Gadkari announced strict penalties for companies, contractors, consultants, and officials compromising on construction quality. As reported by ANI, he stated that companies will face blacklisting and stringent penalties, with every pothole to be tracked through Network Surveillance Vehicles. The minister revealed that 30% drop in quality problems has been achieved since close monitoring began, with improvements expected to continue over the next two years. Additionally, Gadkari urged the industry to focus on developing tunnel machinery indigenously due to recent export controls from China.
