CHANDIGARH: After Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari issued a warning to the Punjab government about potentially terminating eight severely affected national highway projects in the state due to attacks on engineers and contractors in Jalandhar and Ludhiana, the newly appointed Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria has directed officials to ensure the timely completion of all central projects. He requested that any issues encountered during project implementation be reported in writing for swift resolution with the support of both central and state governments.Governor Kataria, who also serves as the Administrator of Chandigarh, recently held a review meeting with senior officials from the National Highway Authority, railway officials, the Airport Authority, and BSNL. The meeting focused on assessing the progress of ongoing projects in the state. Kataria stressed the importance of completing these projects without delay and instructed that any problems be reported in writing to facilitate prompt resolution through coopera-tion between central and state governments.Kataria announced that progress reports for all central projects would be reviewed every three months and requested periodic written updates on the projects. During the meeting, he also addressed the issue of heavy traffic in Chandigarh. National Highways Authority officials assured that the construction of new national highways connecting Panchkula to Shimla and Majri to Baddi would help alleviate traffic congestion.Kataria emphasized the significance of Udaipur, Chandigarh, and Jammu as major tourism hubs and proposed the introduction of a daily Jammu-Tawi train service. He also reviewed the progress of new Amrit stations and additional railway lines.Furthermore, Airport Authority of India officials shared plans for a new road connecting Chandigarh directly to Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, which is expected to reduce the distance between Chandigarh and the airport by 10 km. BSNL officials also provided updates on their ongoing projects.Recently, Gadkari urged Chief Minister Mann to take immediate corrective actions, including filing FIRs and enforcing strict measures against those responsible for the attacks on NHAI officials and contractors. Gadkari highlighted that unresolved land acquisition issues and the prevailing law and order situation have led concessionaires to request contract foreclosures and raise claims against NHAI. Should the situation fail to improve, NHAI may be compelled to cancel or terminate eight severely affected projects, which span 293 km and cost Rs 14,288 crore.Previously, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann and former state governor Banwarilal Purohit had clashed on various issues.
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