Cabinet clears an 8.1-km Delhi road tunnel under the Ridge, plus a Kanpur–Kabrai corridor

The CCEA approved a ₹6,969.67-crore, 6-lane NH-148AE tunnel linking the Dwarka Expressway with Vasant Kunj in Delhi — a twin-tube bore under the Southern Ridge — and, separately, a ₹7,145.14-crore Kanpur–Kabrai greenfield highway in Uttar Pradesh.

What happened

• The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved a 6-lane road tunnel on NH-148AE connecting the Dwarka Expressway (NH-248BB) with Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Kunj in Delhi — total project length 8.1 km, cost ₹6,969.67 crore, on Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM) under the NH(O) scheme.
• It is an underground twin-tube tunnel to be bored by Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) beneath the Rangpuri (Southern) Ridge, with a 1.98-km section under the Ridge forest to minimise surface disruption.
• The 8.1 km comprises 3.14 km of tunnel plus tunnel approach ramps, an elevated portion and at-grade road, with a main carriageway of 6.3 km.
• Separately, the CCEA approved a 117.7-km Kanpur–Kabrai access-controlled greenfield highway on NH-34 in Uttar Pradesh — a 4-lane corridor built for future 6-laning — costing ₹7,145.14 crore on BOT (Toll) mode, to be implemented by NHAI.
• The Kanpur–Kabrai corridor forms part of the Bhopal–Kanpur Economic Corridor, is aligned with the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, and is expected to cut Kanpur–Kabrai travel time from 3.5 hours to 1.5 hours.

For Prelims

• CCEA: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, a Cabinet committee chaired by the Prime Minister, that clears major economic and infrastructure proposals; committees of the Cabinet are constituted under the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961.
• Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM): A PPP model for highways where the government funds ~40% of project cost during construction and pays the rest as annuities over the concession period; the developer does not collect toll (NHAI retains toll rights) — it blends EPC and BOT features to share risk.
• BOT (Toll): Build-Operate-Transfer on toll basis — the concessionaire finances and builds the road and recovers its investment by collecting toll during the concession, then transfers the asset back to the government.
• NHAI: The National Highways Authority of India, a statutory body under the NHAI Act, 1988 (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways), responsible for developing and maintaining national highways.
• NH(O) scheme: National Highways (Original) works — the umbrella budgetary scheme under which new national-highway projects (like this tunnel) are sanctioned.
• PM GatiShakti: The National Master Plan (launched 2021) for multi-modal, integrated infrastructure planning, using a GIS platform to coordinate ministries and cut logistics costs — the framework the Kanpur–Kabrai corridor is aligned with.
• Don't confuse: HAM and BOT (Toll) are different — under HAM the developer earns annuities and does not collect toll (NHAI does), whereas under BOT (Toll) the concessionaire collects toll to recover cost; these are two separate approvals, not one project.

For Mains

Syllabus: GS3.9 · GS3.1 · Linkage L2