Tweaks in plan to escalate cost, GMDA wants NHAI to share funds for elevated road project

Gurgaon: GMDA has urged NHAI to share the financial burden of Hero Honda Chowk-Umang Bharadwaj Chowk stretch after changes in the redevelopment plan have led to an increase of around Rs 140 crore in the project cost. The original plan — which included the widening of the 2.2-kilometre stretch and the construction of a single flyover at Umang Bharadwaj Chowk — was initially pegged at Rs 138 crore, fully funded by GMDA. The flyover with three lanes at the intersection, as proposed earlier, included three spans of 30m, 20m and 20m with ramps around 450m in each direction. However, a revised plan now calls for a fully elevated six-lane corridor, pushing the total cost to Rs 280 crore. This difference of around Rs 140 crore is what led to GMDA proposing NHAI partially fund it. The proposal will be submitted to the state govt, which will take it up with the ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) for final approval, a GMDA official said."The revised plan aligns with the city's traffic demands and a fully elevated corridor will help avoid future bottlenecks. We are proposing that NHAI share the financial cost. The proposal will be submitted to the state govt soon," a senior GMDA official said.An NHAI official , who is privy to the matter, confirmed the same, adding, it is "working on the financial modality" of the project.The matter was also discussed during a review meeting chaired by GMDA CEO A Sreenivas on Monday. The GMDA CEO discussed the obstructions in the project and directed the officials to explore "an alternative land" for the construction of a control room for a substation, which currently lies in the project's alignment.This project was part of a broader plan, first approved in 2017, to widen and improve the 5.6 km stretch between Hero Honda Chowk and Dwarka Expressway. While GMDA completed its work on the 3-km section between Umang Bharadwaj Chowk and Dwarka Expressway and NHAI operationalised the underpass on the expressway, the work on the 2.2-km stretch between Hero Honda Chowk and Umang Bharadwaj is yet to take off.The project was originally financed by GMDA, while HSVP was responsible for handing over the land required for the revamp of the 2.2-km stretch. The revamp plan underwent several revisions. Initially, NHAI proposed to widen the road into six lanes with a flyover at Umang Bharadwaj Chowk and the work for this was originally supposed to start in 2019. But later, it was decided that the project would be merged with the Gurugram-Pataudi-Rewari Highway, pushing the start date to Nov 2021 with a deadline of Nov 2023.Later in 2022, Gurgaon MP and Union minister Rao Inderjit Singh insisted on the construction of an elevated road between Hero Honda and Umang Bharadwaj Chowk, citing demand from RWAs and industrial associations. Subsequently, the approval of metro expansion works cast a shadow of doubt on the project. It could not be decided whether at-grade redevelopment works should be taken up; an elevated road along with a metro pillar should be constructed; or a double-decker with an elevated structure and metro on a single pier should be made.In Nov last year, NHAI put the revamp on the back burner till a decision was made on its design and delinked the work from the contractor. However, it was decided earlier this year that NHAI would carry out the project.
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