Zirakpur-Panchkula bypass clears green hurdle

The Zirakpur-Panchkula bypass, being built at a cost of Rs 1,878.31-crore, has got a green nod. According to the officials concerned, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has accorded in-principle approval for diversion of 17.57 hectares of land covered under the project for non-forestry purpose.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has already floated fresh tender to invite bids for the construction of the 19.2-km six-lane bypass. The last date for submission of bids is August 19.

The project, which will bypass the heavy rush on the existing overlapping portion of the four-lane National Highway (NH-5) and NH-7, passing through the highly urbanised areas of Zirakpur and Panchkula, will be awarded by October and the construction will begin in March next. It is to be completed within two years.

The development assumes significance as the bypass was conceived over a decade ago and has been hanging fire for a long time.

In a communication to the state government, a copy of which is with The Tribune, the ministry has conveyed in-principle approval for the execution of the project subject to certain conditions.

“Kindly refer to the subject cited above and letter under reference for seeking prior approval in accordance with Section 2 of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, for diversion of 17.57 hectares of forest land for non-forestry purpose. After careful examination and approval of the proposal by the Regional Empowered Committee (REC), I am directed to convey in-principle approval for the above-mentioned project subject to the following conditions,” the Deputy Inspector General of Forests (Central) under the ministry wrote.

Earlier, the state government had sought approval for diversion of 17.57 hectares of forest land from the ministry, while furnishing the details of the project alignment falling under forest division in Mohali.

The ministry has made it clear that the proposal shall be considered for final approval under Section 2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, after receipt of the compliance report on the fulfilment of the specified conditions. “Transfer of forest land shall not be affected till final approval is granted by the government in this regard,” the ministry has conveyed.

Meanwhile, a senior official disclosed that the bids can be submitted by August 19 following which the work will be awarded by October 15. The construction will commence by March, 2026, and the bypass will be completed within two years.

On April 9, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave in-principle approval to the bypass in Punjab and Haryana on Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM).

The entire land required for the project was acquired by the Punjab Government and handed over to the NHAI in 2020.

The bypass has been planned to facilitate smooth traffic movement and decongest the tricity traffic by extending the connectivity and effectively diverting the traffic around Zirakpur and Panchkula.

The 19.2-km road, which will comprise 6.195-km elevated structure, five flyovers, nine light vehicular underpasses, one vehicular underpass, one railway over-bridge, and one each major and minor bridge, will commence from the Zirakpur-Patiala junction on NH-7 and terminate at the Zirakpur-Parwanoo junction on NH-5, after traversing through Mohali and Panchkula districts in Punjab and Haryana, respectively.

The bypass will provide vital connectivity to Sector 24 and 25 in Panchkula as well as to the outer areas of Panchkula.

According to the detailed project report (DPR), the primary purpose of the project is to ease up the congestion in Zirakpur, Panchkula and surrounding areas by diverting traffic coming from Patiala, Delhi, and Chandigarh international airport in Mohali sides and offer direct connectivity to Himachal Pradesh.

“The bypass will not only reduce the travel time but also ensure hassle-free traffic movement in the congested urbanised sections of NH-7, NH-5 and NH-152,” he added.

FLAGSHIP PROJECT UNDER PM GATI SHAKTI: GADKARI

"It’s a flagship project under the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, aimed at decongesting the busy Zirakpur-Chandigarh corridor. The bypass will flawlessly link the Chandigarh tricity while removing traffic bottlenecks. We have taken up decongestion of Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali urban agglomeration with development of road network, which will take the shape of a ring road. The Zirakpur-Panchkula bypass is an important component of this plan," NITIN GADKARI, UNION MINISTER OF ROAD TRANSPORT & HIGHWAYS