Dwarka Expressway Costs 14 Times More Than Government Approved
Written by Sanjay Kumar
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has uncovered a staggering discrepancy in the cost of the Dwarka highway, a project initiated under the first phase of the Centre’s Bharatmala Pariyojana. The approved amount allocated by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) in 2017 has been exceeded by a staggering 14 times, according to the CAG’s findings.
The CAG’s report highlighted that the construction of the Expressway, which aimed to alleviate congestion on NH-48 between Delhi and Gurugram by transforming it into a 14-lane national highway, came with an extraordinarily high cost. The cost per kilometer for this project amounted to ₹250.77 crore, a stark contrast to the CCEA-approved cost of ₹18.20 crore per kilometer.
In response to the findings, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways explained that the decision to develop the Dwarka Expressway as an eight-lane elevated corridor with limited entry and exit points was intended to facilitate smoother interstate traffic flow. This justification was put forth to account for the elevated cost.
However, the CAG raised concerns, pointing out that there was no documented rationale for planning and constructing eight lanes (elevated lanes) to accommodate an average daily traffic of 55,432 passenger vehicles. The original plan only called for six lanes (at-grade lanes) to accommodate an average annual daily traffic of 2,32,959 passenger vehicles.
This situation of escalating costs wasn’t isolated to this highway project alone. The CAG’s report revealed that the sanctioned costs under the Bharatmala Pariyojana across India were, on average, 58% higher than the initially approved costs.
To illustrate, the approved cost for a project length of 34,800 km was ₹5,35,000 crore (₹15.37 crore per km), while the actual sanctioned cost for 26,316 km of project length stood at ₹8,46,588 crore (₹32.17 crore per km).
Despite these rising costs, the target deadline for completing 34,800 km of national highways by 2022 was not met. Only 13,499 km, which accounts for 38.79% of the CCEA-approved length, had been completed by March 31, 2023. This progress included construction efforts made during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report attributed the escalating costs to significant alterations in project scope and cost estimations. Additionally, more elaborate project specifications were adopted, contributing to the increased sanctioned costs for projects awarded under the first phase of the Bharatmala Pariyojana. This led to an average cost escalation of ₹10 crore per kilometer of construction.
To address the funding shortfall, funds that were initially designated for other schemes (₹1,57,324 crore) were being repurposed. The report highlighted that 78 projects (totaling 1,752 km) approved under other schemes were being reported as achievements of Bharatmala Pariyojana Phase-1 as of March 31, 2023.
The issues weren’t confined to just financial management; the report also exposed deviations from the appraisal and approval mechanisms established by the CCEA. Instances were identified where successful bidders failed to meet tender conditions or were selected based on falsified documents. Additionally, projects were awarded without approved detailed project reports, or they were based on flawed reports.
The report revealed that implementing agencies were still assigning projects without ensuring the availability of necessary land, leading to delays in project commencement and completion. Moreover, numerous Bharatmala projects were being executed without proper environmental clearances, in violation of prescribed procedures.
Furthermore, the report highlighted that safety consultants were not consistently engaged at all construction stages. In some cases, errors in the computation of price-adjustment formulas resulted in contractors and concessionaires receiving excessive price adjustments, totaling ₹99.16 crore. The diversion of funds from escrow accounts for Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) and Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) projects amounted to ₹3,598.52 crore, according to the report.
Despite these challenges, the CAG noted an improvement in the pace of daily project length constructed under the Bharatmala Pariyojana, increasing from 1.04 km in 2018-19 to 12.37 km in 2022-23.
On the same day, another CAG report brought to light violations of toll rules across multiple states in South India, resulting in an undue burden of ₹154 crores on road users.
These violations stemmed from the non-implementation of NH Fee Amendment Rules 2013, leading the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to continue collecting user fees at three toll plazas (Nathavalasa, Chalageri, Hebbalu) during construction delays, despite the amended rule specifying the non-levy of user fees for such periods. Consequently, road users were compelled to pay user fees during these delays.
