Expressway may change course

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Jammu, October 23

As shelling from Pakistan has become a routine affair on the international border, the alignment of the prestigious Delhi-Jind-Amritsar-Katra Expressway is likely to be changed. Instead of passing through the plains of the border districts of Samba and Kathua, the expressway is now likely to pass through the mountainous region of Kathua to make it “safe” from shelling across the border.

Highly placed sources said Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh had been called to Delhi by Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari to discuss the alignment of the ambitious project. “A meeting between Gadkari and Nirmal Singh will be held at 11 am on Monday in which the Detailed Project Report would be finalised to start a survey so as to explore possibilities of taking the expressway from the mountainous belt of Kathua district,” the sources said, adding, “initially it was decided that the proposed expressway would pass through plains of Kathua and Samba districts parallel to the existing Jammu-Pathankot national highway but now the alignment is likely to be changed.” The sources said continuous shelling from across the border and repeated terror attacks on the national highway have forced the authorities to have a relook at the already finalised proposal.

The sources said the work on this highway would start only after finalising the alignment for the Jammu region because Punjab and Haryana had already finalised the areas from which this new highway would pass. “The Deputy Chief Minister has been called to Delhi to give final touches to the project,” the sources said.