The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway’s longest tunnel, which passes through the Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve (MHTR), is nearing completion.
The first of its type in India, this eight-lane tunnel features two parallel tubes, with four lanes each. The tunnel’s overall length is 4.9 km, of which 3.3 km is underground and the remaining 1.6 km is being built using the cut-and-cover technique. The excavation for Tube-1 of the tunnel, connecting Kota to Chechat, has been completed. Around 60 meters (m) of excavation remains for Tube-2 (Chechat to Kota). This is expected to be completed within a month. Furthermore, the entire excavation process is expected to be completed by June 2024.
The width of both tunnel tubes will be expanded. The height will be increased from 8 m to 11 m, while the width will be increased from 9 m to 19 m.
The tunnel will also feature complex technologies such as sensors, light, pollution control, data collecting, supervisory control, data acquisition and AI-based monitoring. The estimated completion timeline for the tunnel project is December 2025.