In a significant move aimed at providing long-term relief to commuters and residents, the Delhi government has granted approval for three major infrastructure projects in South Delhi. The projects, with a combined budget exceeding Rs 759 crore, target the dual challenges of chronic traffic congestion and severe waterlogging that plague the area.
Project Details and Strategic Approval
The approved initiatives include the construction of a new Modi Mill flyover, the expansion of the existing Savitri Cinema flyover, and a comprehensive stormwater drain along the Mehrauli-Badarpur (MB) Road. After years of planning and procedural delays, these projects finally received the crucial go-ahead from the Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC). The Public Works Department (PWD) will be the executing agency for all three.
Emphasizing a holistic approach, PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh stated that flyovers alone are not a complete solution to urban issues. He highlighted the government's strategy of integrating traffic decongestion with stormwater management to ensure citizens receive lasting relief rather than temporary fixes.
Breaking Down the Flyover Projects
The flyover component, sanctioned at a cost of Rs 371.75 crore, is slated for completion within 30 months. It involves two key interventions at critical junctions.
Firstly, a new two-way Modi Mill flyover will be constructed at the busy Outer Ring Road-Captain Gaur Marg intersection. This structure will feature a 1,140-metre three-lane carriageway from the Kalkaji Mandir side towards Modi Mill and an 870-metre stretch in the opposite direction.
Secondly, the project entails the doubling of the Savitri Cinema flyover. This will be achieved by adding a new 435-metre three-lane half flyover. Officials explained that the corridor connecting these two junctions will ultimately have three lanes in each direction, facilitating uninterrupted traffic movement. This is expected to eliminate traffic signals at these key points and significantly reduce congestion on the Outer Ring Road and Greater Kailash-II (GK-II) Road.
The Crucial Stormwater Drain Initiative
Parallelly, to combat the persistent problem of waterlogging, the EFC has cleared the MB Road stormwater drain project with a budget of Rs 387.84 crore. The project aims to rectify issues caused by damaged, missing, and undersized drains that currently fail to handle monsoon runoff.
The work will cover an 11.38-kilometre stretch from the Lado Sarai T-point to Pul Prahladpur. It involves the construction of 22.76 km of precast Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) box drains. The implementation period for this vital civic infrastructure is set at 2.5 years.
Expected Impact and Conclusion
The simultaneous execution of these projects represents a coordinated assault on South Delhi's infrastructure woes. Once completed, the new flyovers are projected to streamline vehicular flow on some of the most congested arteries, saving daily commuters valuable time and reducing pollution from idling vehicles.
Concurrently, the new stormwater drain network along MB Road promises to mitigate the annual monsoon misery of waterlogging, which disrupts traffic, damages property, and poses health risks. The Delhi government's approval of these long-pending projects signals a focused effort to enhance urban livability and mobility in the capital's southern precincts through substantial capital investment.
