Cabinet clears 8-km six-lane Dwarka tunnel in Delhi, four-lane highway in UP

New DelhiJul 1, 2026 05:18 PM IST The tunnel will help in decongesting the Dhaula-Kuan-IGI Airport, Chhatarpur-Mahipalpur, and Rangpuri bottlenecks in New Delhi. To decongest a part of New Delhi, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the construction of an 8.1-km, six-lane tunnel on NH-148AE connecting the Shiv Murti interchange on Dwarka Expressway, next to Indira Gandhi International Airport, with Nelson Mandela Marg in Vasant Kunj, which further connects to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The Rs 6,970-crore Dwarka tunnel project will be developed in the hybrid annuity mode—where the government shares part of the cost with a private party, which earns returns through annuity payments later—and is expected to be completed in five years, officials said.A 3.1-km-long tunnel beneath the southern ridge forest will be part of the project. “There was a demand for this project for a long time. The ridge area, which falls on this section, will not be disturbed at all, and the tunnel will pass under it. The project will be a new artery of Delhi,” said Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw while announcing the Cabinet decision. Vaishnaw further said a detailed geo-technical study and environmental impact assessment have been done for the project. “A tunnel-boring machine will be used for tunnelling under the ridge. It will be similar to the undersea tunnel to be constructed in Mumbai under the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project,” he said. The road connecting Mahipalpur and Vasant Kunj is oversaturated, and there is no scope for its widening, officials said. This road stretch sees heavy traffic jams, even during the lean period. The tunnel will help in decongesting the Dhaula-Kuan-IGI Airport, Chhatarpur-Mahipalpur, and Rangpuri bottlenecks. Along with this, the vehicles coming from Gurgaon, Dwarka, IGI Airport, and West Delhi towards South Delhi will see a reduction in traffic jams, officials said.Story continues below this ad Officials said that about 37,000 passenger car units will benefit daily after the construction of the tunnel. New four-lane highway to Bundelkhand The Cabinet also approved a four-lane highway from Kanpur to Kabrai in Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba district, which will connect to the Bundelkhand region. The 242-km project is part of the Kanpur-Bhopal economic corridor and its construction period will be two and a half years. The Rs 7,145 crore project will reduce the travel time between Kanpur and Kabrai from three and a half hours to one and a half hours and will be designed for a speed range of 80-100 kmph. The highway will traverse the districts of Kanpur, Hamirpur, and Mahoba. It will be developed under the build, operate, and transfer mode.Story continues below this ad Kabrai is a major hub for aggregate mining and supplies materials to Kanpur and Bhopal. Officials said the existing road in the region needs upgrading to meet rising traffic demand. It will also enable decongestion in Kanpur, Ghatampur, Hamirpur, and Kabrai. Dheeraj Mishra is a Principal Correspondent with the Business Bureau of The Indian Express. He plays a critical role in covering India's massive infrastructure sectors, providing in-depth reporting on the connectivity lifelines of the nation. Expertise & Focus Areas: Mishra’s journalism is focused on two of the country's most capital-intensive and public-facing ministries: Ministry of Railways: Tracking the operations, safety, and development of India's vast railway network. Ministry of Road Transport & Highways: Covering policy decisions, infrastructure projects, and highway development. What sets Mishra apart is his rigorous use of the Right to Information (RTI) Actas a primary tool for news gathering. By relying on official data and government records, he ensures a high degree of accuracy and trustworthiness in his reporting. This data-driven approach has resulted in numerous impactful reports that hold public institutions acco