Delhi-Mumbai Expressway nears completion with India's first eight-lane tunnel under a tiger reserve
The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is nearing completion with the opening of India's first eight-lane road tunnel, a 4.9-kilometre stretch near Kota in Rajasthan that runs beneath the ecologically sensitive Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve. The tunnel allows traffic to pass through the protected zone without disturbing wildlife, while eliminating a long, winding stretch that earlier added hours to the journey. It is a key component of the 1,386-km Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, the country's longest, being built at a cost of about Rs 95,000 crore, with work having begun in 2019. Officials have indicated the full expressway could open after June 20, 2026, after which the Delhi-Mumbai drive is expected to be cut to roughly 12 hours. The engineering feat of building an eight-lane highway directly under a tiger reserve marks a significant milestone in India's road-infrastructure push under the broader highway-development programme.
Key Facts & Details
8 points- 1The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is nearing completion with India's first eight-lane road tunnel.
- 2The 4.9-km tunnel near Kota runs beneath the Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve.
- 3It is part of the 1,386-km expressway, built at about Rs 95,000 crore, with work begun in 2019.
- 4The full expressway could open after June 20, 2026.
- 5The drive between Delhi and Mumbai is expected to fall to roughly 12 hours.
Deep Dive
- +The tunnel lets traffic pass the protected zone without disturbing wildlife.
- +It is the longest expressway in India and a flagship road-infrastructure project.
- +The Kota section had been one of the last major gaps in the corridor.
Exam Focus
India's first eight-lane road tunnel, on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, passes beneath which tiger reserve?
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Exam Relevance & Angle
Major infrastructure milestones such as the country's longest expressway and its first eight-lane tunnel are commonly tested current-affairs items, and the expressway length, the cost, the tunnel and the Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve are precisely the facts examiners convert into questions.
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Background & Context
The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is India's longest expressway, stretching about 1,386 kilometres and connecting the national capital Delhi with the financial capital Mumbai, passing through Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra. Built by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) at a cost of around Rs 95,000 crore, it is one of the flagship projects under the government's Bharatmala Pariyojana road-development programme, and several sections have been opened in phases since construction began in 2019. The newly built eight-lane tunnel beneath the Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan is engineered to protect wildlife in the ecologically fragile area while providing a faster, safer passage for motorists. Expressways like this are intended to slash travel times, reduce logistics costs and boost economic connectivity, and the Delhi-Mumbai corridor is expected to cut the journey between the two metros to about 12 hours once fully operational.
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Must KnowTest Yourself
1 / 2India's first eight-lane road tunnel, on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, passes beneath which tiger reserve?
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