Delhi's Ashram underpass to open on Sunday: 10 things to know

The underpass in south Delhi's Ashram road will open for traffic movement on Sunday. The underpass project has so far missed eight deadlines since the foundation stone laying ceremony by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in 2019. 

The Delhi government's Public Works Department has shut both the carriageways of the underpass for the finishing touches and preparations. The Delhi Police has also issued an advisory suggesting the commuters to avoid the stretch due to finishing work and the opening the ceremony of the underpass.  

Here's everything you need to know this much-awaited underpass.

1. The four-lane 750 metre underpass connects the Nizamuddin railway bridge and the CSIR Apartments at the busy intersection. The foundation stone was laid by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on December 24, 2019 and was expected to be completed by December 2020. 

2. It is said that the idea for an underpass at the key Ashram intersection was mooted in 2014 and the PWD had received the nod from the Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure (Planning and Engineering) Centre headed by the Delhi Lieutenant governor. 

3. A tussle over funding of the underpass delayed planning by two years. Delay on the construction of the project is being attributed to the shifting of utilities, migration of labours and lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

4. The estimated cost of the underpass project is said to be around ₹78 crores. 

5. The PWD officials said the deadline was first extended to March 2021, then further pushed to June 30 that year, and to September 2021, PTI reported. It was again extended to December 2021 and then to March this year.

6. Ashram Chowk is an important link between central and south Delhi and also with Faridabad. The junction connects the Mathura Road and the Ring Road (linking Lajpat Nagar-Sarai Kale Khan and the DND flyover).

7. According to data provided by the traffic police, around 2.5 lakh to 3 lakh vehicles cross the Ashram intersection every day during peak traffic hours.

8. The underpass would benefit commuters passing through the busy Ashram crossing and ease their ride towards Sarita Vihar, Badarpur and Faridabad from ITO and vice versa.

9. The traffic trials of the Ashram underpass had started on March 22. But the trials were marred by traffic snarls on the day. Commuters travelling on the stretch said the trial run of the underpass has only resulted in shifting the bottleneck from one place to the other.

10. According to data provided by the traffic police, around 2.5 lakh to 3 lakh vehicles cross the Ashram intersection every day during peak traffic hours.

(With PTI inputs)