KMP expressway delayed
The most waited and prestigious infrastructure projects 136-km Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway has crossed its completion deadline by four years and now has turned into a major its delay have made the project controversial.
This expressway was proposed, to allow traffic, but now due to the delay commuters have to take various highways to bypass the capital. Although with the Rs 1915 crore project, the expressway project is getting in controversy along with funding problems and allegations of wrongdoing. Now the Haryana government is preparing to replace the company and bring in new proposals.
Approvals and Finance:
According to sources, Haryana State Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation and DS Construction signed an agreement in 2006 and formed a special purpose vehicle called KMP Expressway Ltd for the build-operate-transfer project the two sides had agreed the project would be ready for commercial operation from July 29, 2009.
Delay and Penalty:
The delay of the project has caused damages on the payment structure for the company. They took loan from IDBI bank and IDBI wrote back to HSIIDC saying there had been no deposits by the concessionaire in the account for 5-6 months. Firstly HSIIDC tried to withdraw the penal amount of Rs 17.88 crore from a joint account of the concessionaire and the lead lender, but they were charged with a penalty of Rs 23.52 crore.
Infrastructural development:
There were two proposed expressway for this KMP expressway. One from Manesar to Kundli which was suppose to be 83 km. It was decided that 8 km from the Manesar toll complex the KMP Expressway will cross NH-8. There are signs that a flyover was being built here and an elevated mud-track runs on both sides of the intersection.
Another was Manesar to Palwal which will be 53 km long. Later the wide road is divided into two lanes one for Manesar-bound vehicles and the other for Palwal-bound vehicles.
Manesar to Kundli :
This flyover will be directed to Kundli, one ramp that was apparently planned to connect to the flyover stops abruptly near a village temple and the village stands between the ramp and the main elevated track. According to the residents of that place, there is no sign of a road for about 2 km on the mud-track from Eakharpur.
According to sources, 20-km stretch until Pataudi Road had only been constructed. There are about six underpasses along the mud-track in various states of completion. The officials are telling that due to land acquisition problems, the construction was delayed.
Manesar to Palwal
Even after approval of huge financial amount, the road is poorly built and bumpy at the start but becomes smooth and easily motorable after what is supposed to be the Manesar toll plaza.
There are a lot of roadblock after around 20 km. This road cuts through the Aravallis a little over 1 km in Mewat district drops dangerously and making it difficult for vehicles to pass.
The KMP Expressway will run across the 50-year-old mosque here called the ‘Jharnewaala masjid’. There are already many legal wrangling around this project. After the Aravalli roadblock, the expressway returns to being a smooth road for a little below 30 km until the incomplete Palwal toll plaza. This expressway is yet to be connected to NH-2, the Delhi-Faridabad-Agra expressway. Until this construction is completed, there is no service road also for general usage.
Real Estate Take:
Although KMP Expressway attracted a lot of investors for residential and commercial estates the delay in these projects has also delayed other real estate projects in and around this area. It is infrastructure that majorly attracts investors, but if there are no proper roads, builders would never be interested to invest in this area.
After such controversies and delay in projects, it leaves us with the question; will KMP Expressway be able to attract builders again? Or will it still remain a barren land.
Areas like Manesar and Kundli are upcoming areas for real estate investment; will this delay affect the projects in these areas?
