GURUGRAM: Senior officials of Haryana State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (HSIIDC) have claimed the 83km-long Kundli-Manesar stretch of the 135km KMP expressway should be completed by December 2017.This, after the project has missed several deadlines, the latest being in June this year, which had been touted as a revised deadline, as reported by TOI on March 7.According to the official, around 30-40% of the work has already been completed, and with all necessary land already acquired, the project should be completed by year-end, making the entire KMP expressway fully functional. He added the state government is focused on timely completion of the project as not only does it augments regional connectivity, but should also boost economic activity in the corridor. All this, after state PWD minister Rao Narbir Singh took stock of the project on Monday.Work for the stretch was inaugurated in September 2016, with chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar announcing it will be completed within 400 days, though the agreement mentions a deadline of February 2019.Originally started in 2006, the expressway was allotted to concessionaire M/s KMP Expressway Limited , with a completion date of July 2009. When it failed to deliver on time, the agreement was cancelled on court orders.Thereafter, the project went to the backburner, before gaining momentum under the present dispensation, as it would create a high speed connect between northern and southern districts of the state, augmenting industrial activity in Kundli and Manesar.In July 2015, a sub-committee headed by the chief minister approved the second phase between Kundli and Manesar. It had by then set an overall deadline for completion of the project at January 2016, with Essel Infra Group the new concessionaire. The 53km stretch between Palwal and Manesar was inaugurated in April 2016 by Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari. The project attracted his ministry's interest as it is expected to de-congest NCR by providing non-Delhi bound traffic an alternative route that doesn't need such traffic to enter the capital.The six-lane highway will be access-controlled and have four rail overbridges at Farrukhnagar (Ghari railway line), Rewari (Pataudi railway line) and Delhi (Rohtak and Ambala railway lines).

Stay updated with all the Latest Gurgaon headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.