The long-pending Manjhawali bridge road project, aimed at providing direct connectivity between Greater Noida and Faridabad, will take a major step forward with the laying of its foundation stone on December 26. The project, estimated to cost around Rs 66 crore, will be executed by the Public Works Department following the ceremony.
However, land acquisition for the project is yet to be fully completed. So far, 70 per cent of the required land has been acquired, while 30 per cent remains with farmers. In some cases, farmers have sown crops even on land for which compensation has already been disbursed.
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The project has a long history of delays. It was first conceived in 1989, when the foundation stone was laid by former Union Minister Rajesh Pilot. Work remained stalled for decades and was revived after 2014 with a fresh foundation-laying ceremony. While Haryana completed its portion of the project, progress in Gautam Buddh Nagar was held up due to disputes over land compensation.
According to officials, farmers agreed to part with their land after compensation was fixed at par with rates offered by the Greater Noida Authority. Due to fund constraints, compensation has been paid for only 70 per cent of the land so far. On December 26, Haryana minister Rajesh Nagar and Jewar MLA Dhirendra Singh will jointly lay the foundation stone, after which construction is expected to begin.
The project will provide connectivity to the Manjhawali bridge through a five-kilometre-long road. This includes the construction of a new 1.7-km, four-lane road with a width of 45 metres, widening of an existing one-kilometre stretch to 10 metres, and repair of about two kilometres of road in the Greater Noida area.
In total, 4.99 hectares of land are being acquired from 130 farmers in Jagunpur, Murshadpur and Jagunpur Doab villages, with nearly 85 per cent of the land belonging to farmers from Jagunpur. Around Rs 25 crore has already been distributed as compensation at the rate of Rs 3,720 per square metre, while payments to farmers in the remaining villages are pending.
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Once completed, the road is expected to significantly reduce travel time between Greater Noida and Faridabad, ease traffic pressure on Delhi roads, and improve connectivity to the upcoming Noida International Airport. Around 200 villages in both districts are expected to benefit directly.
“The tender for the road construction has been awarded, and the work will be completed within a year,” said Kanchan Verma, Executive Engineer.