The Ministry of Road Transport and Shipping has given a go-ahead to long expected 4-laning of National Highway, connecting Shimla and Parwanoo. The ninety Kilometer stretch will be widened in three different sections, and is hoped to be completed in two years. The 27 kilometer stretch from Kaithali Ghat to Dhalli will be a completely new construction, featuring an ultra-modern single span 600 m long bridge at Malyana. Three tunnels, costing Rs. 1200 crore, will, also, be drilled near Anandpur, Shogi and Dhalli. Once the highway is constructed, travel time from Shimla to Parwanoo is expected to be cut short by 45 minutes.
Zirakpur in Punjab, on the outskirts of Chandigarh, was connected to Parwanoo by the Himalayan Expressway, built impressively by Jaypee Infrastructure, and was completed two years ago. With the new programme underway, Shimla would become accessible from the plains directly by the expressway.
