Secretary Public Works (Finance, Planning, Economics & Statistics, and Twenty Point Programme) Dr. Abhishek Jain has directed the concerned officials to speed up the construction of the four-lane project on National Highway-105 from Pinjore to Nalagarh. He was chairing a review meeting with officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and district administration during his visit to Nalagarh Sub-Division, today.
The Secretary said that the construction of this 31.195 km long stretch was being carried out at an estimated cost of Rs. 469 crore. The project includes 96 culverts, 15 minor bridges and four major bridges. Construction of flyovers and other key structures was currently underway in various phases.
He directed NHAI officials to ensure high-quality construction and complete all pothole patchwork on the highway by 30th April, 2025. He asked the officials to give special attention on installing proper signage in accident-prone areas, near populated zones and other designated locations as per safety norms to help prevent road accidents.
Dr. Jain instructed regular inspections to monitor the quality and progress of the project. He said that it was importance of maintaining the existing road alongside the new construction so as to avoid inconvenience to commuters. He directed officials to identify water-logged spots on the under-construction stretch and submit a detailed report within a week to find permanent drainage solutions.
He urged NHAI to resolve all pending land disputes at the earliest to avoid delays in the construction process. He also discussed the reasons for the slow progress of the project with officials from NHAI and M/s Patel Infrastructure Ltd., the company executing the work and issued necessary instructions to improve the pace of construction.
Earlier, Dr. Jain inspected the highway construction site. He expressed concern that delays in the project were hampering the supply of raw materials and dispatch of finished products from the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh (BBN) industrial area, which was adversely affecting the economy of the state.
SDM Nalagarh Raj Kumar, Director of HPRIDCL Pawan Sharma, Chief Engineer PWD Shimla Ajay Kapoor, NHAI Project Director Anand Kumar, Deputy Manager Sumit Bansal, Site Engineer Dinesh Poonia, Project Manager of Patel Infrastructure Ltd. Satendra Kumar and other senior concerned officials were present on the occasion.