With the NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) taking over the much-anticipated JORR (Jaipur Outer Ring Road) project, Jaipurites have got another reason to rejoice. The construction of a 150-kilometer, 6-lane long outer ring road was proposed by PWD in December 2000 on BOT basis. In 2011, the JDA (Jaipur Development Authority) selected San Jose Supreme as their final bidder for this joint Public-Private Partnership (PPP) venture. Though the contractors were supposed to wrap it up within 24 months, due to internal conflicts between the companies, the Jaipur ring road project was stalled till date. However, with NHAI’s involvement, things appear smoother than before.
A Brief Preview of the Jaipur Ring Road Project: Why It’s Important for the City?
Jaipur ring road is a controlled-access, wide expressway encircling the capital. Its design offers a maximum speed up to 120 km/hr. The project was bifurcated in three phases. In phase I & II, a 47-km long road was proposed for southern regions of Jaipur that would link Agra Road, Ajmer Road and Tonk Road in a close-knitted circuit. In Phase III, a 97.75-km long road will be constructed in the northern region of the Pink City, linking Ajmer road and Agra road with Sikar and Delhi roads.
Now that things have settled down for good, the NHAI will soon initiated the first phase of project in two months. Rajasthan government has set August 2018 as the final deadline for completion of phase I & II.
Moved by the vision of Rajasthan government, the union minister of road transports, highways and shipping, Mr Nitin Gadkari had officially announced that the NHAI would take over the pending project, on his last visit to Dausa. We’re glad that things have sped up since then. Recently, Mr Gadkari demanded the NHAI officers to prepare a DPR (detailed project report) on Jaipur ring road project that was pending since last 5.5 years. This Wednesday, the details were finalised in New Delhi by Gadkari himself.
Accordingly, a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) will be drawn between the NHAI and JDA, the details of which will be discussed in a committee meeting this week, as reported by UDH minister Shrichand Kriplani.
A committee led by the former chief secretary will be constituted to cease the tripartite contact between JDA, Sanjose-Supreme and the banks. New changes involving the project will be publicised soon.
The Benefits
The expressway will have 3-lane service roads on sides, an investor’s development corridor and a 135-m long R&R. The good thing is that drivers can avoid traffic jam in congested areas of the city. The motorists and bikers can easily move through and around the Rajasthan capital. Ring road is a signal-free, toll-free expressway—this will reduce travel time for local traffic as well as incoming road travellers.
Jaipur ring road will provide quick and convenient access to heavy vehicles around the city road network. It’s likely to being economic benefits to the state in future, by improving accessibility to the industrial zones that are being developed under Resurgent Rajasthan.
Since the road will provide an alternative route from north to south, the traffic volume on city-bound roads will be minimised. Eventually, it’ll help the government control reckless driving and road accidents. Lastly, since Jaipur is a major tourist hub in Rajasthan, the ring road will attract road travellers from the neighbouring states.
Considering the long list of benefits involved with Jaipur outer ring road, it isn’t surprising that the government is putting intense efforts into this project. The ring road project will boost infrastructure and road tourism economy of Jaipur in the near future.
