Punjab News Daily

New Delhi, May 13

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Wednesday secured major assurances from the Centre for completion of several long-pending highway and flyover projects in Punjab after a crucial meeting with Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, with stalled infrastructure works at Makhu, Adampur and Bhawanigarh set to move forward and key road corridors across the state likely to witness large-scale expansion and four-laning. 

During the meeting, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann also raised Punjab’s demand for declaring strategically important roads, including the Ferozepur-Fazilka corridor near the international border, as National Highways, while pressing for faster execution of projects that have remained stuck for years due to delays and bottlenecks. The Chief Minister said the Centre also assured four-laning of the Bhawanigarh-Kotshamir road via Sunam, Cheema Mandi, Bhikhi, Mansa and Maur, besides expansion of the Barnala-Bajakhana and Malerkotla-Barnala corridors, in what is being seen as a major push for Punjab’s road connectivity, economic movement and public safety. 

CM Bhagwant Singh Mann further stated that Union Minister Nitin Gadkari highly appreciated the functioning of the Punjab government’s ‘Sadak Surakhya Force’, launched to protect lives and ensure safer highways across the state.

During the meeting held in New Delhi, CM Bhagwant Singh Mann raised the issue of the delayed Wallah Flyover project in Amritsar and urged Nitin Gadkari to expedite the work in larger public interest. “The Wallah Flyover project was awarded by the National Highways Authority of India and was originally expected to be completed by September 15, 2023. However, despite repeated extensions, the project remains incomplete, with physical progress currently at around 76 per cent against the revised completion date of April 30, 2026,” he said.

TheChief Minister noted, “The corridor is critically important as it connects Amritsar Airport with Sri Harmandir Sahib and handles heavy traffic movement, including frequent movement of VIPs. The continued delay in the project has resulted in severe congestion, safety concerns and immense inconvenience for commuters and local residents.”

“It is the need of the hour that NHAI takes urgent remedial action for expeditious completion of the remaining work on the Wallah Flyover so that the project is completed in a time-bound manner,” asserted the Chief Minister.