WION exclusive: Indian minister Nitin Gadkari spells out plans to decongest capital Delhi

India’s Minister of Road and Highways Nitin Gadkari in an exclusive interview to WION spelt out his ambitious plan to decongest the roads in the national capital New Delhi

Speaking to WION’s Vikram Chandra on Friday, Gadkari said that the government is making new highways (expressways) around Delhi to divert the additional traffic coming from neighbouring states.

“Presently, road construction worth Rs 6,200 billion is being done in Delhi. Around 80 per cent of the work on the 30-km Dwarika expressway is completed. It is being built at a cost of Rs 100 billion. Another expressway, a 76-km six-lane urban extension road is being built at the cost of Rs 90 billion, and57 per cent of the work is completed,” he said.

It is expected that the new expressway will reduce travel time between the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway and the Delhi-Chandigarh highway to half an hour. The road will ensure a faster link for traffic, especially from Gurgaon, IGI airport, South and West Delhi, heading towards Chandigarh and beyond.

Gadkari added that the construction of new expressways will make sure that the pollution in the national capital Delhi will get reduced by 50 per cent by the end of 2024.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari plans to decongest India's capital

The minister said that these new expressways will “make sure that the pollution in Delhi is reduced by 50 per cent”.

Adding, “Since maximum pollution is because of fossil fuels in Delhi.”

On e-vehicles

The transport minister shared optimism on the growing appetite for electronic vehicles in India. He said that the government is supporting the domestic industry and encouraging them to focus on electric vehicles.

When asked about the lack of charging infrastructure in Indian highways, Gadkari pointed out that they are building “charging stations” on highways across the nation.

Talking about the discovery of 5.9 million tonnes of lithium deposits in Jammu and Kashmir, the minister said he hopesthat they will be able to capitalise on the discovery and cut India’s import costs.He noted that India imports 1200 tonnes of lithium every year.

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