Good news for Delhi-NCR commuters, Ashram underpass to be ready by next month

File Photo (ANI)

New Delhi: Commuters are likely to breeze through the busy Ashram crossing in south Delhi from March onwards as the construction of an underpass there will be completed by the end of February, PWD officials said.

According to the Public Works Department (PWD), which is helming the project, nearly 90 per cent of the work has been completed. Currently, the work related to ramp covering on both sides of the underpass is being carried out which will be completed next month.

"The project is in its last leg. After the ramp covering work, only finishing touches will remain. All sorts of construction activities will be completed by the end of February and we are hopeful that the underpass will be ready to be used from March onwards," a senior PWD official told PTI on the condition of anonymity.

He, however, said the pace of work has slowed down a bit in the last fortnight due to rain.

The Ashram Chowk is an important link between central and south Delhi and also with Faridabad.

The junction connects Mathura Road and Ring Road (linking Lajpat Nagar-Sarai Kale Khan and Delhi-Noida-Delhi flyover).

The traffic police data shows that around 2.5 to 3 lakh vehicles cross the Ashram intersection every day during peak traffic hours.

To ease the traffic logjam here, the 750-metre-long underpass is being built on Mathura Road between Nizamuddin Rail Bridge and CSIR Apartments at Ashram Crossing.

Once the project is completed, it would benefit commuters passing through the busy Ashram crossing and would ease the ride towards Sarita Vihar, Badarpur Faridabad from ITO and vice versa.

"This is an important project and to complete it soon is our top priority. The project has already got delayed due to the ban on construction activities in November-December and COVID-19 restrictions. It is likely to be opened in March this year," another official said.

The ban on construction activities across Delhi-NCR was ordered by the Supreme Court in November after air pollution reached alarming levels in the region.

The foundation stone of the project was laid by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on December 24, 2019, and it is being built at an estimated cost of Rs 78 crore.

The project's initial deadline was December 2020 which was extended to March 2021. It was then pushed to June 30, 2021, and further to September 2021. It was again shifted to November 2021 and then to December 2021.

The latest deadline of the project is February 2022, officials said.