The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved the construction of an 8.1-km, six-lane road tunnel connecting Dwarka Expressway (NH-248BB) with Nelson Mandela Marg in Vasant Kunj at an estimated cost of ₹6,969.67 crore.
The project will be developed under the Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM) as part of the National Highways (Original) [NH(O)] scheme.
According to the government, the project is aimed at improving connectivity between West and South Delhi by linking the Urban Extension Road-2 (UER-II)/Dwarka Expressway corridor with Vasant Kunj. It is also expected to benefit commuters travelling from Gurugram, Dwarka, Indira Gandhi International Airport and West Delhi towards South Delhi.
The proposed alignment includes a 3.14-km underground twin-tube tunnel, which will pass beneath the Southern Ridge Forest using Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) technology. Nearly 1.98 km of the tunnel will run below the ecologically sensitive Ridge area, minimising surface-level disruption.
The tunnel will begin at the Shiv Murti Interchange and terminate near the junction of Nelson Mandela Marg and Mahipalpur-Chhatarpur Road.
To ease congestion at the terminal junction, the project also includes a 1.8-km elevated corridor along Nelson Mandela Marg, an additional flyover from Chhatarpur towards Mahipalpur, and an elevated U-turn to facilitate smoother traffic movement.
The total project length of 8.1 km comprises 6.3 km of main carriageway, including the tunnel, approach ramps, retaining wall approaches, elevated stretches and at-grade road sections.
The government said the tunnel will integrate with the proposed AIIMS-Mahipalpur Elevated Corridor, which will connect to the Barapullah elevated road, providing seamless connectivity between West, South and East Delhi, as well as Ghaziabad and Noida.
