Amritsar: Union Road Transport and highway minister Nitin Gadkari was on visit one-day visit to Amritsar where he inspected the work of Amritsar-Katra expressway. The minister also paid obeisance at Shri Harimandir Sahib, Amritsar. Nitin Gadkari along with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and cabinet ministers reviewed the ongoing work of NHAI in the state.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann in a post on X said , “Union Minister @nitin_gadkari and I reviewed the functioning of the Delhi- katra Expressway, the development path of Northern India… very soon this expressway will be dedicated to the people of India… Punjab Government is providing all kinds of support to NHAI… as soon as this expressway is ready. Employment and trade will start and many business opportunities will open…”
Five greenfield and economic corridors are being built in Punjab at a cost of Rs 29,000 crore. This 669 km greenfield expressway Delhi-Amritsar-Katra is being built at a cost of Rs 40,000 crore. With its construction, one can reach Amritsar from Delhi in 4 hours and Katra from Delhi in 6 hours. Presently the distance from Delhi to Katra is 727 km, with the construction of this route the distance will be reduced by 58 km.
The length of this expressway in Punjab is 399 km, of which work has started on 296 km. The length of the expressway in Jammu and Kashmir is 135 km, of which work is going on in 120 km. In Punjab, this expressway will pass through industrial areas like Patiala, Sangrur, Malerkotla, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Gurudaspur.