DDA infuses funds in ₹7,700-cr 3rd ring road project

Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has infused ₹725 crore in the Urban Extension Road (UER)-II, which is popularly known as Delhi‘s Third Ring Road. It has been handed over to NHAI by DDA as the agency is better equipped to handle a project of such a scale.

DDA signed the MoU with NHAI for the construction of UER–II as a national highway. It is expected to make traveling from the northern end of the capital to Indira Gandhi International Airport and south Delhi a breezy affair. This road will significantly enhance the connectivity of the sub-cities of Dwarka, Rohini, and Narela and the proposed land pooling areas with the rest of Delhi and the neighboring states. By connecting the major national highways, it will contribute significantly to easing heavy traffic congestion and improving the air quality. The six-lane access-controlled expressway with service lanes has an approximate cost of ₹7,700 crore, out of which DDA has agreed to provide the viability gap funding of ₹3,600 crore. This would be released in a phased manner. While ₹1,787 crore would be funded from the Urban Development Fund, the rest would be paid by DDA. As work on the project gathered pace, ₹900 crore was released during fiscal 2021-22. For this, the budget estimate for 2021-22 of ₹100 crore was enhanced and ₹725 crore was kept in the budget estimate for 2022-23. NHAI has bid out all stretches of the 757.7km highway for which construction work has already started on the project has a completion date of July 2023.