Work on almost half of the packages in the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway has been completed as of June 2024 and constitution has been completed on 82% of the stretch, the ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH) informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
In a written reply to Narhari Amin, BJP MP from Gujarat, union minister Nitin Gadkari said that out of the total length of 1,386 km, a cumulative length of 1,136 km has been constructed.
“The physical progress of the work is 82% and a cumulative length of 1,136 km has been constructed… The revised scheduled completion date is October 2025,” he said.
The ministry, he added, has taken up construction of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway including spurs in 53 packages covering 1,386 km length. As of June 2024, a total of 26 packages have been completed.
The corridor provides connectivity to major economic centres within Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra. It will offer alternate connectivity to Jaipur, Kota, Chittorgarh, Indore, Ujjain, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, and Vadodara and will reduce distances and travel time, which in turn will save fuel and logistical costs.
“As per the DPR, the impact includes reduction in distance from Delhi to JNPT by about 180 km and reduction in travel time of up to 50% to connected destinations,” Gadkari added.
Currently, Mumbai and Delhi are connected by NH-48, which is longer (1,440 km) as well as congested.
Once completed, the 1,386-km expressway will be the longest in India. Last week, News18 reported that even before completion, the partially opened Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is the longest in India, surpassing all the existing e-ways in the country. Out of the 1,386 km, 619 km of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is operational including the Delhi-Dausa-Sawai Madhopur section, Jhalawar-Ratlam-MP/Gujarat border, and the Vadodara-Bharuch section.
In June, News18 reported that two additional almost 200 km sections of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway could be expected in the next six months.
Majorly, the expressway is divided into two parts – the 845-km Delhi-Vadodara section and the 450-km Vadodara-Mumbai section. The section up to Vadodara is expected by March 2025 while that to Mumbai will be ready by October 2025. The 90-km DND Sohna and Jewar part of the road is expected by July 2025.
As per the ministry, the Delhi-Mumbai greenfield expressway is generating employment of 50 lakh man-days during the construction phase.
The expressway is being developed with an eight-lane configuration and has provision to expand to 12 lanes in future. Vehicles can operate on the road at a maximum speed of 120 km/hr.
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