Nitin Gadkari inaugurates 5 national highway projects in Sonipat, says Delhi to Chandigarh commute in 2 hours
“Earlier, it took 4.5 hours to travel from Delhi to Meerut, but with the expressway coming up, it now takes only 40 minutes. Residents of Meerut have told me that they now go from Meerut to Connaught Place to eat ice cream,” said Nitin Gadkari.
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Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari. (PTI Photo/File)Inaugurating five new national highway projects in Sonipat on Monday, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said that the distance from Delhi to Amritsar will be covered in four hours and it would take two hours to commute from Delhi to Chandigarh.
“With the completion of these projects and other projects in the pipeline, I promise that the distance from Delhi to Amritsar will be covered in four hours; Delhi to Katra will be covered in six hours and Delhi to Srinagar will be done in eight hours. People will be able to commute from Delhi to Chandigarh in two hours, Delhi to Dehradun in two hours, Delhi to Haridwar in two hours and from Delhi to Mumbai in 12 hours. No one will consider taking a flight to go to Chandigarh or Dehradun as our road network will expand so fast,” said Gadkari, inaugurating the five national highway projects worth Rs 2871.8 crore.
Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Haryana deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala were also present on the occasion.
“Earlier, it took 4.5 hours to travel from Delhi to Meerut, but with the expressway coming up, it now takes only 40 minutes. Residents of Meerut have told me that they now go from Meerut to Connaught Place to eat ice cream,” said Gadkari.
He added that to solve the problem of traffic congestion from Delhi towards cities of Haryana, a double-decker bus taking aerial route, along the lines of pod taxi, which can ferry 250 people from Delhi to Panipat and Sonipat will be started in future. “Send me a proposal and I shall make it happen,” he said while addressing the Haryana CM.
Gadkari said that there was a need to invest in newer technologies.
“Since 2004, I have been saying that we need to find alternatives for petrol and diesel. I have a car powered by green hydrogen. It is better than a Mercedes. Ab desh ki gaadiyan paani par chalengi…green hydrogen taiyar kar ke [Cars will now run on water…by producing green hydrogen] There will be no need of petrol and diesel in future,” he said.
Gadkari said, “I tell farmers to not sell their lands…let the road be built and then develop the land and become crorepatis.”
“I am not one of those leaders who made promises for 40 years and work was not done…Hum jo bolenge wo karenge [we will do what we say],” he added.
Emphasizing the importance of roads, he quoted former US President, John F Kennedy, “American roads are not good because America is rich, but America is rich because American roads are good.”
Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar said, “With the national highways coming up, local population in these areas will benefit immensely. As connectivity improves, people of the state will get opportunities for growth, it will create employment and lead to economic prosperity in the region.”
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