GHAZIABAD: A sum of Rs 124 crore is set to be released for laying of new Ganga water pipelines along NH-24 following a TOI report on how delay over it was affecting the highway-widening project. The amount will be made available by Noida Authority and UP Housing & Development Board to the NHAI which will use it to lay 13.5 km of new pipeline from Dasna to the Pratap Vihar water treatment plant in Ghaziabad.The approval of Rs 124 crore has been conveyed through Noida Authority to the NHAI on June 22, said NHAI project director RP Singh.The share of Noida Authority is around 75% of Rs 124 crore.The NHAI had been finding it difficult to undertake widening work along the right flank of the highway from Hindon bridge onwards as one drives down from Delhi because of the presence of the cement-concrete pipelines. A proposal was mooted to replace the cement-concrete pipes with those made out of steel in order to avoid damages. The pipelines carry water from the Ganga canal near Masuri in Dasna to Pratap Vihar where it is treated before being supplied to Noida and parts of Ghaziabad.A memorandum of understanding for the pipeline-laying project will be signed among Noida Authority, UP Housing & Development Board, UP Jal Nigam and the NHAI later this week. The NHAI, which will undertake the work, will also pay supervision charges to the Jal Nigam.“Work on laying the new pipelines will begin within a month after the agreement is signed by the four agencies. We have set a target to complete the work within six months. Widening work will take place simultaneously over sections of the 13.5-km-long pipelines as they progressively get completed. We are, however, yet to get a clearance from the railways to dismantle the steel over-bridge at Lal Quan and install a new one in its place,” NHAI project director RP Singh told TOI.In a report last week, TOI had highlighted how delay in changing the pipelines could push back completion of NH-24 widening project, which is being closely monitored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi . The completion of the second section of NH-24, from UP Gate to Dasna, is targeted for completion in March 2019 just prior to the general elections.

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