Hamirpur-Dharamsala travel time to drop by an hour

Travel between Hamirpur and Dharamsala is set to become faster by December this year, with journey time expected to reduce by nearly an hour. Project Director of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), Vikram Singh Meena, said most of the construction work on the highway has been completed and the remaining portions will be finished by yearend.

The new alignment will cut the distance between Hamirpur and Dharamsala by about 12 km, while also easing congestion by bypassing Nadaun, Jawalamukhi and Kangra towns. Travellers will also avoid bottlenecks at Rangas, Jalari, Ranital and Daulatpur villages.

According to Meena, major progress has been made on key bridges at the Beas near Nadaun, Baleugloa, Khapar Nala and Baner near Kangra. Although tunnels near Kangra stand completed, traffic could not yet be opened on that section due to delays in the Baner bridge. Once operational, this bridge alone will shorten the route by nearly 7 km.

In the long run, the entire Shimla-Mator highway will reduce the distance between Shimla and Dharamsala by 45 km and cut travel time by more than two hours. Construction on the Nauni-Shalaghat stretch towards Shimla has also begun.

The NHAI has divided the ambitious project into multiple packages: Shimla–Shalaghat (Package 1), Shalaghat-Nauni Chowk in Bilaspur (Package 2), Bhager in Bilaspur-Kohli in Hamirpur (Package 3), Kohli-Bhangwar in Kangra (Package 4 and 4A) and Bhangwar-Mator in Kangra (Package 5).

The project was announced by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari during his visit to Hamirpur in July 2016.