Delhi government approves 270-km road strengthening project worth Rs 658 crore

3 min readNew DelhiJun 25, 2026 02:33 AM IST

The Delhi government approved Rs 657.99 crore to strengthen and repair 270 km of roads across the Capital, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Wednesday, adding that the project would focus on improving durability, road safety and construction quality.

The projects were cleared at a meeting of the Expenditure Finance Committee chaired by Gupta on Wednesday. The project will cover 270.63 km of roads in East, North and South Delhi and are targeted for completion by October, an official said.

Of the total approved outlay, Rs 147.08 crore has been earmarked for strengthening 58.292 km of roads in the East Maintenance Zone. Another Rs 247.31 crore will be spent on 104.42 km of roads in the North Maintenance Zone, while Rs 263.61 crore has been approved for 107.92 km in the South Maintenance Zone, officials said.

According to the government, the project would involve cold milling of damaged road surfaces, followed by the laying of Dense Bituminous Macadam — a thick bitumen-and-aggregate base layer — and Bituminous Concrete, the final road surface.

Other works will include tack coats to bond old and new layers, lane and zebra-crossing markings, road furniture such as signboards, reflectors and safety barriers, and kerb channels for roadside drainage, officials said.

In a first, the government has also decided to introduce a zone-wise composite tendering system, replacing the conventional practice of issuing tenders road by road. Officials said the move was intended to attract established road construction firms, allow better deployment of machinery and technology, and improve monitoring and accountability.

Under the new model, contractors will be responsible for maintaining roads during a five-year Defect Liability Period. The government said any potholes that develop during this period would have to be repaired within 48 hours.

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On the sustainability of the project, Gupta said the projects were designed not only as a road-upgrade exercise but also with road safety and environmental considerations in mind. The tenders have been framed in accordance with the dust-control and air-quality requirements prescribed by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), she said.

Project progress will be uploaded regularly on the Geospatial Delhi Limited/Project Monitoring Group (GSDL/DPMG) portal, while geo-tagged photographs will be taken before, during and after the work has been carried out. Independent quality audits will also be carried out by Central Road Research Institute (CSIR) and the School of Planning and Architecture, according to the government.

Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh and senior officials were also present at the meeting.

Devansh Mittal is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, based in the New Delhi City bureau. He reports on urban policy, civic governance, and infrastructure in the National Capital Region, with a growing focus on housing, land policy, transport, and the disruption economy and its social implications.

Professional Background

Education: He studied Political Science at Ashoka University.

Core Beats: His reporting focuses on policy and governance in the National Capital Region, one of the largest urban agglomerations in the world. He covers housing and land policy, municipal governance, urban transport, and the interface between infrastructure, regulation, and everyday life in the city.

Recent Notable Work

His recent reporting includes in-depth examinations of urban policy and its on-ground consequences:

An investigation into subvention-linked home loans that documented how homebuyers were drawn into under-construction projects through a “builder–bank” nexus, often leaving them financially exposed when delivery stalled.

A detailed report on why Delhi’s land-pooling policy has remained stalled since 2007, tracing how fragmented land ownership, policy design flaws, and mistrust among stakeholders have kept one of the capital’s flagship urban reforms in limbo.

A reported piece examining the collapse of an electric mobility startup and what it meant for women drivers dependent on the platform for livelihoods.

Reporting Approach

Devansh’s work combines on-ground reporting with analysis of government data, court records, and academic research. He regularly reports from neighbourhoods, government offices, and courtrooms to explain how decisions on housing, transport, and the disruption economy shape everyday life in the city.

Contact

X (Twitter): @devanshmittal_

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