CAG report flags irregularities in Bharatmala Pariyojana
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has flagged project cost overruns in the construction of the 29.06 km long Dwarka Expressway. In its report, the CAG has said that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) approved the cost amount to the construction company at the rate of Rs 250.77 crore per kilometer, instead of the rate of Rs 18.20 crore per kilometer approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).
This expressway connects Delhi to Gurugram. As per the project, NH 48 has been developed as a 14-lane expressway. According to the project’s feasibility study, of the average 3,11,041 daily vehicles plying on NH-48 between Delhi and Gurugram, 2,88,391 were passenger vehicles (92.72%). Of these, 2,32,959 vehicles travel daily between the two cities.
In its audit report on ‘Implementation of Phase-I of Bharatmala Project‘ (or BPP-I) between the period 2017-18 to 2020-21, the CAG has made several observations on the 14-lane road project. The expressway has eight elevated lanes and six lanes at grade – aimed at reducing passenger congestion and traffic load on NH-48 between Delhi and Gurgaon.
The report said that the Dwarka Expressway was initially planned by the Haryana government under its Gurgaon-Manesar Urban Construction Plan-2031. For this, Haryana had acquired a right of way (road width) of 150 meters for the construction of a 25-metre main carriage way, including a 7-metre-wide median and a dedicated utility corridor for trunk services. Due to lack of progress in the project, it was included in Phase-I of the Bharatmala Project.
