Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Thursday met Union minister of transport and highways Nitin Gadkari to discuss the proposed Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway and other pending projects in Punjab.
The discussion on the Delhi-Katra highway, which was also attended by Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar and Jammu and Kashmir deputy CM Nirmal Singh, focused on road alignment and land acquisition costs for the project. Amarinder said the Centre should pay all the acquisition costs for the highways, because of the state’s poor fiscal health. The CM was in favour of aligning the road via Pathankot into Amritsar to Tarn Taran to Moga to Barnala and Samana before moving into Haryana, in order to encourage the development of these areas.
The Union minister suggested formation of a group of revenue secretaries from the three states as well as the central government to study and recommend the modalities of the acquisition process.
Amarinder also urged Gadkari to intervene to expedite the declaration of Khanna-Malerkotla-Raikot-Jagraon-Nakodar as a national highway. Pointing out that 18 of the 22 districts of Punjab were already connected with four- or six-lane national highways, Amarinder said only Ferozepur, Mansa, Muktsar and Fazilka districts were connected with two-lane NH. His request for connecting these to wider highways through approval of four-laning of Barnala-Mansa section of NH-703 and Dabwali-Malout-Abohar-Fazilka section of NH-10 was pending with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), said the CM, seeking the Union minister’s support in the matter.
The CM was accompanied by state finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal and chief principal secretary Suresh Kumar.
{{/usCountry}}The CM was accompanied by state finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal and chief principal secretary Suresh Kumar.
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