NEW DELHI: The Public Works Department minister Manish Sisodia inspected the Pragati Maidan integrated underpass on Monday and gave an assurance that it would be opened in a month.
In a tweet, Sisodia said: “Reviewed the construction of the roads and tunnel around/under Pragati Maidan, Bhairon Marg, Mathura Road and Ring Road. This corridor will soon ease traffic in and around Ring Road and India Gate. The work is almost complete and will be ready to be opened in a month.”
This is the second visit of the deputy CM to an ongoing project. Earlier, Sisodia visited the Ashram underpass and set the deadline for completion of major road infrastructure projects.
The series of underpasses and a tunnel road would be used by lakhs of people to commute daily to ITO, Ring Road, Central Secretariat, India Gate and central Delhi. Earlier, Sisodia had directed officials to complete the project by May. However, on Monday he stated that it would be “opened in a month”, which meant April.
The Pragati Maidan integrated transit corridor, a project of national importance, is being developed jointly by the Centre and Delhi government. After suffering a series of setbacks due to Covid-related lockdowns and environmental ban, work is going on in full swing.
The 1.6km tunnel goes under Pragati Maidan, starting near National Sports Club on Purana Qila Road and ending on Ring Road near Pragati power station. While five underpasses are located on Mathura Road, one is on Ring Road. They will help reduce snarls for over 90,000 commuters using the ITO intersection every day. Similarly, the Bhairon Marg section will face less traffic congestion after the opening of the tunnel.
Two of the five underpasses on Mathura Road are near Sunder Nagar and three between Pragati Maidan and Supreme Court. The underpass on Ring Road connects to Bhairon Marg. The tunnel will give a glimpse of the six seasons of India.
Keeping in mind safety measures, around 100 CCTV cameras will be installed inside the tunnel. There will be large exhaust fans to keep it cool and manage vehicular pollution. Apart from a control room set up inside, there will be water tankers to manage any fire incident.
