The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has issued a fresh call for bids to appoint a consultant for the upgrade of the Palampur-Padhar section of the Pathankot-Mandi highway to a four-lane road. The project, initially planned as a two-lane highway, has been stalled for the past three years due to changes in alignment and road width requirements.
The delay dates back to December 2022, when Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu raised concerns about the capacity of the two-lane design to handle the growing volume of tourist traffic in the region. Following his objections, CM Sukhu advocated for the construction of a four-lane highway to better accommodate the state’s increasing tourist influx and support regional development. In response, Union Minister of Shipping and Transport Nitin Gadkari directed the NHAI to revise the plans and prepare a new project report for the four-lane upgrade.
This change in scope has contributed to a nearly two-year delay, as the NHAI awaited approval to appoint a new consultant for the project. With fresh bids now being invited, the appointment of the consultant is expected to take an additional six months. Following this, a detailed project report (DPR) will be developed, and land acquisition processes will begin, potentially pushing the construction start date for the Palampur-Padhar stretch to 2026.
Meanwhile, work on other segments of the Pathankot-Mandi highway is progressing. The Pathankot-Palampur section is on track for completion within the next two years. The Padhar-Bijni (Mandi) stretch has already been cleared by the Environment Ministry and awarded to a private contractor. However, progress on the 60-kilometer Palampur-Padhar stretch, which links the Kangra and Mandi districts, remains slow, despite the broader highway project being inaugurated by Nitin Gadkari in 2016.
The Pathankot-Mandi highway is a crucial corridor that connects the northern regions of India, including Leh-Ladakh, and plays a key role in supporting both military logistics and tourism in the region. The NHAI’s efforts to upgrade the highway to a four-lane road are seen as vital to improving connectivity and supporting regional development in Himachal Pradesh.
