The Gurgaon portion of the Dwarka Expressway is likely to be opened in the first week of March, said officials of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi may inaugurate it, added officials. “The finishing touches are underway, and we will open it (Gurgaon portion of the expressway) soon,” said sources. Modi, who is scheduled to attend the foundation stone laying ceremony of Rewari AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) on Friday, will launch the Gurgaon Metro project as well, said officials. The 29-km-long Dwarka Expressway — 18.9 km (length wise) in Haryana and the remaining 10.1 km in Delhi — starts from Shiv-Murti on National Highway 8 and ends near the Kherki Daula toll plaza. Gurgaon Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav said that the inauguration could take place by February-end or the beginning of March. "We had written to the NHAI, requesting it to open the Haryana stretch (of the expressway) as this would help commuters significantly. Though we did not get any response in writing, we were informed about the project's progress. Minor works such as the installation of street lights, tiles, and thermoplastic road marking are yet to be done. This would not take over 15 days, and the tentative date for the inauguration is either February-end or within the first two weeks of March," Yadav said. DC Yadav also said that Gurgaon MP Rao Inderjit Singh had met Union Road and Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, who then directed NHAI officials to finish the work along the Dwarka Expressway stretch and make it operational. The work on the Dwarka Expressway's Delhi portion would take a few months to be completed, he said. The project, at a total cost of about Rs 10,000 crore, is currently proposed to connect Dwarka Sector 21 to NH-8 passing through Gurgaon sectors 88, 84, 83, and 99-113 along with the proposed Global City, before ending at NH-8 ahead of the Kherki Daula toll plaza.
