3rd road cave-in in two months on Dwarka e-way

During road realignment by NHAI, a 300-metre stretch near Sector 36 CPR could not be laid due to land issues.

One lane of the Dwarka Expressway’s Central Peripheral Road (CPR) was barricaded near the GMDA bus stop, between Elan Mall and Kherki Daula, after a portion of the road caved in on Sunday morning, officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said. The cavity, caused by subsidence of the earth underneath, was detected around 10am, following which authorities barricaded the stretch to prevent accidents. 

The cavity, caused by subsidence of the earth underneath, was detected around 10am. (HT Photo)

According to NHAI officials, this marks the third instance in the past two months where the same stretch has developed a cavity, reportedly due to ongoing pipeline work by the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), which was halted last month after repeated cave-ins. 

“A depression appeared on the road on Sunday morning, after which one lane was barricaded and the maintenance agency was pressed into service. The road was repaired by 3pm, and the GMDA was informed about the incident,” said a senior NHAI official. “This is the third road cave-in that has occurred at this location after GMDA started laying a master water pipeline of 2000 mm diameter under the Dwarka Expressway. It was due to repeated cave-ins that the pipeline work was stopped,” the official added, requesting anonymity. 

The official further said that NHAI will allow the resumption of pipeline work only after GMDA ensures adequate engineering safety. “Permission to lay the pipeline under the road will be granted only after GMDA takes adequate measures, such as constructing a tunnel or other supporting structures to install such a large pipeline. Technical experts from NHAI will evaluate the proposed design before any approval is given. Already, the pipeline has been laid under the road for up to 40 metres, and it is causing repeated subsidence of earth beneath the road,” the official said. 

According to GMDA officials, the agency is laying two segments of pipelines under the CPR—which is part of the Dwarka Expressway — to ensure connectivity of the master pipeline from Chandu Budhera to the Sector 72 water boosting station. “The work on the road was started in July after all information was shared with the NHAI. We have also shared all designs and plans of the ongoing work with the NHAI,” a GMDA official had said earlier this week. 

GMDA added that the missing 1,600 mm master pipeline, originally laid by HSVP in 2012, runs from Chandu Budhera to Dhankot and along the Dwarka Expressway to the Sector 72 station. However, during road realignment by NHAI, a 300-metre stretch near Sector 36 CPR could not be laid due to land issues. 

When contacted about Sunday’s incident, a GMDA spokesperson said the agency was coordinating with NHAI and field teams to assess the damage. “Rectification has been done under the supervision of L&T staff,” the spokesperson said.