NCRTC begins utility shifting for Delhi–Panipat RRTS, pre-construction on

NCRTC floats tenders to shift overhead lines and cables on Narela–Murthal stretch, clearing path for viaduct and station construction once funds are cleared.

delhiThe National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) has started preparatory work on the second phase of the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS), setting in motion the plan to expand the high-speed Namo Bharat corridor, which will link Delhi with Panipat and eventually Karnal.

Corridor will cut travel time to under an hour; officials expect utility diversion to take a year before full-scale station and track construction begins. (NCRTC-X)

Even as final financial approvals are awaited from the Centre and the Haryana and Delhi governments, officials aware of the matter said, NCRTC has floated tenders and initiated the critical process of relocating utilities along the proposed alignment.

This pre-construction stage, officials said, is essential groundwork before full-scale civil construction of stations, viaducts and tracks can begin.

The utility diversion exercise involves shifting and modifying overhead power lines, low-tension cables and transformers that currently obstruct the path of the corridor. The first phase of work covers a 22-kilometre stretch between Narela and Murthal.

NCRTC officials estimate the exercise will take nearly a year to complete.

“Such pre-construction works are unavoidable for a project of this scale. Once the utility shifting is completed, work on stations, viaducts and track-laying can be taken up smoothly. The RRTS service, with its high frequency and modern rolling stock, aims to offer a safer, cleaner and more efficient option for the nearly one lakh daily passengers projected on this stretch,” said an NCRTC official.

The Delhi-Panipat line is one of three priority corridors identified under the RRTS network, conceived to seamlessly connect the capital with satellite towns. Designed for trains running at up to 180 kmph, the corridor will start at Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi before pushing into northwest Delhi and Haryana, passing through Narela, Kundli, Sonipat, Gannaur, Samalkha and Panipat, with later phases extending further to Karnal. At 136km long with 17 stations (excluding Sarai Kale Khan), the line is expected to significantly bolster public transport between the Capital and its surrounding cities.

Travel time between Delhi and Panipat – currently a gruelling two to three hours by road or conventional trains – will be slashed to under an hour. The Sarai Kale Khan station will serve as the nodal hub for all three RRTS priority corridors and will be interoperable, allowing trains to run across the Delhi-Meerut, Delhi-Alwar and Delhi-Panipat lines.

Yet the project’s financial architecture is still being finalised. Like the other RRTS corridors, it will draw on a combination of central and state government equity, loans from multilateral agencies and NCRTC’s internal accruals. “The approvals are in advanced stages and expected soon. In the meantime, NCRTC has initiated activities that do not require full financial sanction such as utility shifting,” the official cited above said.

Meanwhile, preparations are also underway for the formal inauguration of the Sarai Kale Khan RRTS station, the last stop within Delhi’s boundaries on the Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut corridor. Designed as a multimodal hub, it will be integrated with the Delhi Metro, the upcoming Hazrat Nizamuddin transport interchange and the inter-state bus terminal, giving it a pivotal role as Delhi’s primary gateway into the RRTS system.

According to tender documents, contractors tasked with utility relocation must carry out the work while ensuring minimal disruption to road traffic. NCRTC plans to float additional tenders in the coming months so that diversion works can proceed simultaneously across multiple stretches.

Officials said that once complete, the Delhi-Panipat RRTS corridor will not only ease congestion on the Delhi-Ambala highway (NH-44) but also help decongest Delhi by encouraging people to live in satellite towns without sacrificing accessibility.