The Centre has allocated Rs 1,150 crore to build a 13.4km-long elevated four-lane corridor between Balason and Sevoke to ease traffic congestion in Siliguri and another Rs 800 crore for the protection of landslide-prone NH10 that links Sikkim with the rest of the country, Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista has said.

Bista made the announcement after a meeting with Nitin Gadkari who heads the Union ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH).

The allocation of funds for the improvement of connectivity in north Bengal follows a meeting between Gadkari and chief minister Mamata Banerjee during her Delhi trip last month. Mamata had urged Gadkari to release funds for several pending projects for the state, especially in north Bengal.

Even as the central grant followed Mamata’s meeting with thoe Union minister, Bista sought to claim credit for the central assistance.

Bista said he had stressed during the meeting with Gadkari the need to expedite the development of Darjeeling More, the principal entry point to Siliguri and the junction of NH31 and NH55.

“The minister has told me that the project has been included in the annual programme of his ministry for the 2021-22 fiscal. He said the ministry would build a 13.4km-long elevated four-lane corridor (along NH31) between Balason (located at the northwest end of Siliguri) and Sevoke and will spend around Rs 1,150 crore on the project,” the MP said.

There has been a long-standing demand to decongest Darjeeling More and the elevated highway will be a step in that direction.

During the meeting with Bista, Gadkari said the MoRTH had planned the expansion, redevelopment and construction of protection walls at around 20 locations though which NH10 passes with an estimated cost of around Rs 800 crore, claimed Bista.

The NH10 is the principal highway that connects Sikkim and the hill district of Kalimpong with the rest of the country. During monsoons every year, traffic gets affected along the highway – especially in the Bengal part – because of recurring landslides.

“We also discussed the proposal for an alternative bridge at Sevoke that is parallel to the Coronation Bridge. The minister said the 1.34km-long bridge would be built over the Teesta and the group of ministers has already granted the lease of a small parcel of railway land needed for the project,” said the MP.

The Coronation Bridge that was built in 1941 is on the principal route that connects the Dooars with the hills and Siliguri.

As the bridge has grown old, residents of the Dooars have time and again demanded a parallel bridge downstream the Teesta.

Gadkari’s ministry, the MP said, is also working on two other projects. One of these is the construction of a 60km-long NH717A that would connect Kalimpong with Siliguri via Gorubathan.

The National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) is building the alternative highway to Kalimpong and the work is expected to end by April 2023, he said.

“Also, the ministry has issued a tender for conducting a feasibility study of building a ring road in Siliguri. It has received 18 bids and is examining the same,” added Bista.