Cost of the Autram ghat tunnel increased by 63 per cent

Aurangabad, March 4:

The cost of tunnel work in Autram Ghat in Kannad tehsil under Solapur-Aurangabad-Dhule National Highway has gone up by 63 per cent. A new detailed project report (DPR) of Rs 5,500 crore was submitted to the NHAI chairman committee. The old DPR was pf Rs 3,500 crore.

Decisions are being delayed due to the rising costs of tunnel work. MP Dr Bhagwat Karad and MP Unmesh Patil recently made a suggestion at a meeting of the chairman and committee members in Delhi that considering the number of passengers and vehicles, the road between Patna and Nagad routes should be double lane, with a separate route for both lanes. NHAI chairman Sukhbir Singh Sandhu was present. The six laning of the highway is proposed in Autram Ghat, and a fifteen-kilometre tunnel is under construction in the hills.

In view of the inconvenience caused to the commuters in the ghats, an immediate fund of Rs 25 crore has been approved. This work will be started soon. The DPR for the tunnel work is of Rs 5,500 crore. Alternative routes should be developed to avoid inconvenience to the commuters. There will be direct transport to Jalgaon from Nagad and Patna.