The Centre has approved three transformative infrastructure projects worth a combined Rs 14,850 crore to enhance connectivity to the National Capital Region and cut travel times to destinations like Katra and Dehradun.

The first project extends the 20-km Delhi–Amritsar–Katra Expressway (NE-5) from the Kundli–Manesar–Palwal Expressway to the Urban Extension Road II (UER-II) via NH-344M, Dwarka Expressway, and the Delhi–Mumbai Expressway. Costing Rs 4,000 crore, it will offer “direct connectivity to traffic headed to Delhi, Gurgaon and IGI Airport,” a senior official said, while providing an alternative to NH-44.

The second involves a 17-km extension of UER-II near Alipur to link with the Delhi–Dehradun Expressway (NH-709B) at Tronica City, Ghaziabad. At Rs 3,350 crore, this bypass will “decongest Delhi by diverting long-distance and freight traffic away from central roads,” officials noted.

The third is a 65-km eastern extension of UER-II from the Delhi–Dehradun Expressway to Noida via Ghaziabad and Faridabad, estimated at Rs 7,500 crore. It will interconnect major corridors—Delhi–Meerut, Noida–Greater Noida, DND–Faridabad, and the Yamuna Expressway, and improve access to Loni, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Noida, and Faridabad from all parts of Delhi.