Phase-5 of 225-km Kangra-Shimla four-lane project nears completion

Ravinder Sood

Palampur, May 5

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has geared up to construct Phase-5B package of the 18.3-km Shimla-Kangra four-lane project between Kangra and Bhangwar Ranital. Over 60 per cent construction work of this phase has been completed, including two bridges on Baner and Bathu rivers, passing through Kangra valley. In the next six months, both bridges are likely to become operational.

Two bridges ready

• Over 60 per cent construction work of this phase has been completed, including two bridges on Baner and Bathu rivers, passing through Kangra valley. In next six months, both bridges are likely to be operational
• The construction of this phase was taken up in January 2023. It had earlier been held up for want of forest and environment clearances and removal of other infrastructure like transmission lines
• The construction of the 225-km highway project between Kangra and Shimla has been divided into five packages The Kangra-Shimla highway project will be the first to be constructed by using grid-based road technology.
• When completed, the 225-km long project will reduce the distance between Kangra and Shimla by 45 km

The construction of this phase, which started in January 2023, had earlier been held up for want of forest and environment clearances and removal of infrastructure like transmission lines. The Shimla-Kangra four-lane highway is one of the strategic road projects that will connect six districts of the state with Shimla.

The construction of small culverts has already been completed, while the construction of two flyovers at the Tanda bypass and Ranital is still in progress. The major cutting for the widening of the 18.3-km stretch of the highway has also been completed. The construction of the twin tube Daultapur- Kangra tunnel is in full swing.

After the construction of these tunnels, the distance between Daulatpur and Kangra town would be reduced by 7 km. The total cost of this package has been estimated at Rs 1,100 crore.

While talking to The Tribune, head of the NHAI projects (Himachal Pradesh) Abdul Basit said the construction of the 225-km highway project between Kangra and Shimla had been divided into five packages.

“The stretch will have nine tunnels and four high-rise bridges. It will bypass major towns like Darlaghat, Bilaspur, Hamirpur and Jwalamukhi. The travel time will be reduced from six hours to four hours, if travelling by car. Fuel consumption will also reduce. Besides, the lesser curves on the highway will reduce the accident rate, providing more safety to road users. The longest tunnel will be constructed between Shalaghat and Piplughat,” he added.

The project head said, “Keeping in mind the fragile hills of the state and repeated landslides on highways, the Kangra-Shimla highway project would be the first to be constructed by using grid-based road technology. This will reduce the maintenance cost and provide safe passage. The grid-based technology saves hills from vertical cutting. The first lane is constructed on a higher slope and the second lane on a lower slope. This makes a grid of two separate roads running parallel on the hills.”

Soon after taking over as the Chief Minister, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had called on Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari and demanded early completion of all the four-lane projects in Himachal Pradesh.

The NHAI will use the maximum length of the existing NH-88 (now renamed NH-103), though it will bypass major bottlenecks and towns to avoid displacement of people. The 225-km long four-lane project, when completed, will reduce the distance between Kangra and Shimla by 45 km.