Shimla: The 48 kilometres long stretch of Kiratpur-Nerchowk (NH 21) four-lane connecting prominent tourist destination Manali is set to be completed by December 2022.
The Union Government has given its approval for the construction work of the second phase of the four-lane. In the second phase, construction work will be done from Kainchi Mod to Bhawana.
Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari provided this information via Twitter.
In his tweet, Gadkari said that this project will reduce the journey time between Kiratpur to Kullu by up to four hours. It will boost tourism and ensure prosperity for the people of Himachal Pradesh.
The project started in 2013 and was supposed to be completed in three years, but was delayed due to a financial crunch and was later abandoned in 2018.
However, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) resumed the construction of the highway in two phases i.e., brownfield alignment and 47 km stretch of greenfield alignment.
The construction work was stopped in June 2020 due to irregularities but was later resumed.
