Asked if travel by road will become faster and more convenient than taking flights and trains, Union minister Nitin Gadkari gives an epic response.
Road infrastructure in upcoming years
Traveling from Delhi to Jaipur and other major cities will be much faster in the future, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said at an event hosted by India Today.
From the inauguration of the Delhi-Jaipur expressway on February 12, to the construction of the green express highway and the Delhi-Mumbai expressway, commuters have a lot to look forward to, Gadkari said.
“Delhi to Mumbai in 12 hours. The distance from Delhi to Jaipur will be covered in 2 hours. The Delhi-Dehradun route will be 2 hours long. Delhi to Chandigarh in 2.5 hours, Delhi to Srinagar in 8 hours, Katra in 6 hours, and Amritsar in 4 hours. Chennai will be 2 hours away from Bengaluru. While Bengaluru to Mysruru will be an hour’s journey. Nagpur to Pune in under 5 hours,” he detailed.
Asked if travel by road will become faster than taking flights and trains, Gadkari replied, “Before the opening of the Mumbai-Pune highway, there were eight flights operated by Jet Airways on this route. Now, there are none.”
By the end of this year, most flights on the Delhi-Jaipur, Delhi-Dehradun, and Delhi to Chandigarh routes will become obsolete, Gadkari joked.
Budget 2023 allocation
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in Budget 2023, has allocated Rs 2.7 lakh crore to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, of which the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has allocated around Rs 1.62 lakh crore.
Gadkari said investing in basic infrastructure – water, power, transport, and communication — was essential to helping poverty and ensuring the country’s development.
“If basic infrastructure is developed, it will attract industries, which in turn will increase capital investment. More capital investment means employment opportunities, which will help reduce poverty in the country,” said Gadkari.
