It’s a Shame: Gadkari Slams NHAI Officials for Delaying Project

While inaugurating the new headquarters of the NHAI, Gadkari observed that it took 9 years to complete the project.

File photo of Nitin Gadkari 

(Photo source: The Quint)

Union Road Transport and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday, 25 October, gave a long dressing down to government officials for an inordinate delay in finishing a project.

While inaugurating the new headquarters of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), Gadkari observed that it took nine years to complete the project.

“The current chairman and members are unrelated to it. But the great personalities who worked on it from 2011 to 2020, If possible, photos of CGMs and GMs should be put up in the building. They delayed decisions for nine years,” Gadkari said, reported NDTV.

While speaking at the virtual inauguration ceremony, the Union Minister also highlighted the issues plaguing NHAI. He said that it’s a norm to congratulate people when a project is completed but it is hard for him to do so because it took two governments and eight chairmen for the project to get completed.

“It is a matter of shame that the Rs 250 crore-project was finalised in 2008, had its tender awarded in 2011 and took another nine years to build,” Gadkari was quoted saying by NDTV.

Gadkari further stated that “We say with pride that we will complete the Delhi-Mumbai expressway in two to three years. It is worth Rs 80,000 to 1 lakh crore. But it took so many years to complete this project of Rs 250 crore,” reported NDTV.

(With inputs from NDTV)