From Shahjahanpur to Delhi in 70 minutes

JAIPUR: The state government on Saturday approved the detailed project report (DPR) of the Delhi-Gurugram-SNB (Shahjahanpur-Neemrana-Behror Urban Complex) Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor.


Once constructed, the Rs 25,000 crore (approximate) corridor is expected to bring down the travel time between Delhi-SNB to about 70 minutes.

Currently, it takes around two-and-a-half hours to reach Delhi from Shahjahanpur, the farthest point of the corridor, by road. Speaking to TOI, the spokesperson of the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) board confirmed the development.

“NCRTC, the implementing agency of the project, had approved the Delhi-Gurguram-SNB corridor (106km) DPR in December 2018. Rajasthan too gave its approval. As per the report, the estimated time to complete the project is six years. The project will be tabled in the cabinet for the final nod,” he said.

Corridor is planned to be implemented in three stages

The Delhi-Gurugram-SNB corridor is planned to be implemented in three stages. In stage I, Delhi–Gurugram–SNB Urban Complex will be constructed. In stage II, it will be extended from SNB Urban Complex to Sotanala and in stage III, SNB Urban Complex to Alwar will be constructed.

However, the project is not expected to benefit Rajasthan in stage I as only 2km out of the total 106kmlong corridor will be in Rajasthan. “In the first stage, only one station will be constructed near Shahjahanpur, which will cover SNB Urban Complex,” said the NCRTC official.

The corridor will be elevated for about 71km (11 stations) and the remaining 35km (5 stations) will be constructed underground, mostly in Delhi and Gurugram.

Recently, chief secretary D B Gupta had also requested the ministry of housing and urban affairs to review the final alignment of the RRTS proposed between Delhi-Gurgaon-Rewari-Alwar. The move came after NCRTC failed to include major industrial towns such as Bhiwadi, Tapukara and Khushkhera (BTK) on the route alignment.

In a letter dated May 6, Gupta had written, “The first phase of this project will hardly benefit the state of Rajasthan despite the sharing the equity. Rajasthan was the first state to give its consent to share equity in the project. The instant perusal of proceedings related to revision in alignment makes it clear that the proposal was to include Shahjahanpur-Neemrana-Behror Urban Complex, the new industrial town being developed on NH-8 under the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project, unaware of the fact that this revision will completely exclude BTK from the RRTS alignment.”

An NCRTC official said the Delhi-Gurgaon-Rewari-Alwar RRTS smart line will pass through the urbanized and industrialized areas of Haryana and connect Delhi airport with the RRTS network, increasing the overall productivity of NCR. The corridor will strengthen the regional transport infrastructure by providing a fast, safe, comfortable and reliable mobility option for the residents of Delhi, Gurugram, Rewari, Manesar, Daruheda, Bawal and nearby areas. “We have included Daruheda on the route as it would benefit the industrial towns Bhiwadi, Tapukara and Khushkhera (BTK) of Rajasthan,” he said.