Ill-conceived policies behind delay: Gurjeet Singh Aujla on non-completion of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway

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Amritsar, July 19

Slamming the state government, Amritsar MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla today said its “ill-conceived policies” were creating bottlenecks in the completion of the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra expressway.

Despite funds allocated by the Centre, the work on the much sought-after project had been stalled, he said.

“Out of Rs 2,624 crore approved by the Centre, Rs 749.67 crore is yet to be distributed among the owners whose land will be acquired for the project,” the MP added.

The state government is yet to take possession of land in and around Amritsar, Aujla pointed out.

The land acquisition is still pending in many sections — Tarn Taran to Mananwala, Rajewal to Ajnala, Amritsar to Ghumarvi, Rajewal to Ajnala via Khemkaran Sahib, Amritsar to Ramdas and Beas to Dera Baba Nanak. The Punjab section of the 650-km expressway begins from near Galoli village in Patiala and ends at the Gurdaspur bypass. The proposed Amritsar greenfield connectivity starts from Nakodar and ends near the canal on the Amritsar to Ajnala road.

Once the project gets completed, one could reach Amritsar from Delhi in four hours and Katra from Delhi in six hours. At present, the distance from Delhi to Katra is 727 km. This project will provide the shortest connectivity to industrial and economic hubs of Ludhiana, Mohali, Patiala, Jalandhar, Kapurthala and Sangrur in Punjab; Ambala in Haryana; Kathua and Jammu in J&K and Chandigarh.

Aujla said, “The money is lying in the treasury. It’s the AAP government, which failed to utilise the amount. The Centre has given two months to the state government to complete the highway project. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann should direct the officials concerned to meet the deadline. Else, the Union Government will be forced to scrap it.”