A few days after approval in principle was granted for operation of Tejas Express between Dehradun and Delhi, the Government of India has granted its approval in principle for construction of the new national highway between Dehradun and Delhi. An elevated road and a new tunnel are also proposed in this project. The chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has greeted the people of Uttarakhand on this development.

Reacting to the development, Rawat said that construction of this national highway will further boost tourism in the state. This national highway will prove to be a milestone in the state’s economic development.

The construction of this national highway will decrease the distance between Dehradun and Delhi substantially to about 180 kilometres. The State government will provide all possible assistance to the National Highways Authority of India for the construction of this expressway, said Rawat.

On Monday, the NHAI chairman SS Sandhu met the CM at his residence here.

He informed that construction of the new national highway from Dehradun to Delhi will start soon. After construction of this new national highway, the distance between Delhi and Dehradun will be about 2.5 hours by road. Elevated road and a new tunnel near Mohand are proposed as part of this project. Sandhu informed the CM that some portion of this new national highway will pass through forest and wildlife area of Uttar Pradesh. The Uttar Pradesh government has been requested to expedite the procedure for forest and wildlife clearance so that work on construction of the national highway can be started.