By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 11 Jan: The district administration has actively begun working to make the Dehradun Elevated Corridor project a reality, in line with the Chief Minister’s vision. The project aims to enhance traffic flow and infrastructure in the capital while ensuring flood protection and environmental beautification of the Rispana and Bindal rivers.
Under this project, a four-lane elevated corridor is to be constructed over Rispana and Bindal rivers to alleviate traffic congestion in Dehradun city. Alongside the elevated road, retaining walls are also planned to be built on both riverbanks for flood protection, along with the beautification of both these rivers in an eco-friendly manner.
To discuss the project’s execution, a meeting was held at Manthan Auditorium, Forest Headquarters, Rajpur Road, here, today. Officials from the Public Works Department (PWD) presented the proposed elevated corridor plan and gathered suggestions from public representatives. Attendees included Cabinet Minister Ganesh Joshi, MLAs Vinod Chamoli, Umesh Sharma ‘Kau’, Savita Kapoor, Brij Bhushan Gairola, and Khajan Das, along with Dehradun Mayor Saurabh Thapliyal, District Magistrate Savin Bansal, SDM Kumkum Joshi, and senior PWD officials.
During the discussion, public representatives emphasised the need to integrate the project with the city’s drainage plan, riverfront development, and service lanes for settlements under the Master Plan. They also suggested forming a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the project’s smooth execution, involving senior officials from MDDA, Doon Municipal Corporation, PWD, and Revenue Department, alongside local MLAs and urban development authorities.
District Magistrate Savin Bansal stated that a feasibility study, alignment planning, and draft DPR for the elevated corridor project have been completed. IIT Roorkee has conducted a hydrological model study, while joint departmental inspections have been carried out for the relocation of power lines, high-tension lines, sewer lines, and other utilities. The land acquisition process is also underway.
Chief Engineer, PWD, Ranjit Singh and Executive Engineer Jitendra Tripathi provided further details. The Rispana Elevated Corridor will be 11 kms in length, costing Rs 2,500 crores, and it will start from Rispana Bridge (near Vidhan Sabha) and end at Nagal Bridge, with intermediate junctions at Sahastradhara Chowk and Dhoran-IT Park Road. On the other hand, the Bindal Elevated Corridor will be 15 kms in length, costing Rs 3,750 crores, and will start from Bindal Bridge (near Kargi Chowk) and end at Rajpur Road, near Sai Mandir, with intermediate junctions at Lal Pul Chowk, Bindal Tiraha, Vijay Colony, and Mussoorie Diversion.
It remains to be seen whether Dehradun, aiming to modernise its traffic infrastructure, reduce congestion, and enhance urban aesthetics really sees concrete progress in a few years from now. Or this project ends up being just another pipedream.
