The 200-feet wide ring road project in Mohali to decongest Zirakpur by easing Shimla-bound traffic has had no progress with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) yet to get a nod for the Rs 800 crore project. The project, which was mooted in 2013, came to a stop in 2014 and now in 2021, it is yet to progress. In 2018-19, Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) handed over about 100 acres of land to the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), but NHAI is yet to get permission for the project. R P Singh, regional officer, NHAI, told the media that they are yet to get permission from higher officials for the project of Rs 800 crore. They will commence the land procurement process once they receive permission. The 14-kilometre road is to start from Ambala-Zirakpur highway, pass via Sanoli, Peer Muchalla, Nagla, Gazipur and all Mohali villages before joining the Sector 26-27 dividing road in Panchkula. Once the road is achieved, Shimla-bound traffic can take this road, avoid the bottleneck at Zirakpur and connect the Shimla highway at the end of Panchkula. Ambala or Delhi-bound traffic from Shimla can additionally avoid Zirakpur. As per the Master Plan committee, traffic between Mullanpur and Panchkula and that from Kansal, Zirakpur and Panchkula goes towards Chandigarh for “no reason.” Therefore, the project will considerably help lessen traffic jams on the arterial roads of Chandigarh—Madhya Marg and Dakshin Marg. The road will additionally open an alternative road from Panchkula to the new international airport terminal in Mohali, but it will be much longer than the present route through the Industrial Area, the Zirakpur-Chandigarh road, Sector 48 of Chandigarh, via Aerocity and IT City in Mohali. But, the new route will bypass the traffic of Chandigarh. The project is being executed to prevent about 1.5 lakh vehicles from Punjab and Haryana from entering the city daily. Chandigarh’s Master Plan additionally offers this road to divert the inter-state traffic around the city for better traffic management. In August 2017, then Union home minister Rajnath Singh had nodded the project during a meeting of the Northern zonal council in Chandigarh. The project holds greater importance in view of Rajnath putting the brakes on the much-touted Metro project for Chandigarh in July 2017 and urging the UT administration to look for alternative modes of transport. Image Source Also read: Kerala highways body invites bids to complete Trichy Junction RoB work