Work on Sector 71 underpass to be expedited

NOIDA: The issues delaying a six-lane underpass project in Sector 71 have been resolved, said officials of the Noida authority

NOIDA: The issues delaying a six-lane underpass project in Sector 71 have been resolved, said officials of the Noida authority. The officials also said that the project cost of the 780-metre-long underpass has been revised from ₹52.58 crore to ₹59 crore.

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Now, the project is expected to be complete by June this year as against its original deadline of December 2020.

According to the authority officials, there were mainly two issues affecting pace of the project work -- alignment finalisation of a 7km Metro extension of Blue Line towards Greater Noida West and rising cost.

“These issues have been resolved, so the work will be expedited now,” said Ritu Maheshwari, chief executive officer, Noida authority.

The contractor citing increased construction cost had sought 25% to 30% additional payment from the Noida authority.

“The authority was to obtain clearance from metro railways safety commissioner as a pillar of the Blue Line was aligned extremely close to the underpass. This issue is addressed. Also, after getting the proposal of the construction company vetted by experts, the authority agreed to pay 12% of the total project cost as additional amount,” said a Noida authority official, not authorised to speak to media.

Once ready, the underpass will make the ride over Vikas Marg, the arterial road linking Noida to Greater Noida West, as well as Vishwakarma Marg which connects the expressway in the city on one end to Indirapuram in Ghaziabad on the other.