NEW DELHI: Anticipating that the completion of Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Dehradun expressways in the near future would result in more traffic passing through NDMC and Central Delhi areas, Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari has directed NHAI to carry out feasibility studies for two new links, a tunnel or elevated stretch from Sarai Kale Khan to the proposed INA-Nelson Mandela Marg elevated corridor and a tunnel from Gyarah Murti or Talkatora Stadium to the elevated corridor.The minister has directed that these corridors be “incorporated” into the bids for the elevated corridor from INA to Mahipalpur Nelson Mandela Road in Vasant Kunj, as per the minutes of a meeting that Gadkari chaired on June 4 and that was attended by Delhi Lt governor V K Saxena and CM Rekha Gupta, among others.The national highways authority of India (NHAI), which had earlier invited bids for the INA-Nelson Mandela Marg link, has received bids from consultancy firms for preparing a detailed project report (DPR). “We can incorporate the provision of carrying out the feasibility studies Nitin Gadkari for the two proposed links in the same. A comprehensive detailed report would be more helpful for better management of traffic,” said an official.On June 5, TOI had first reported that NHAI would carry out a technical study to explore the possibility of a tunnel from Gyarah Murti to the proposed elevated road extending from INA to Nelson Mandela Marg in Vasant Kunj. The CM’s office had said a feasibility study would be carried out for a tunnel connecting Sarai Kale Khan to IGI airport.As per the minutes of the meeting, when the INA-Nelson Mandela Marg link proposal came up for discussion, Gadkari “expressed concerns” that this project would not fully resolve traffic congestion in NDMC and Central Delhi areas. At present, the Delhi-Meerut and Delhi-Dehradun expressways terminate near Sarai Kale Khan on Ring Road. The DND-Sohna link of Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will also open by the end of this year.The minister stressed that with all these roads becoming fully operational, there would be more traffic flow in the “already congested NDMC area and Central Delhi”, since the Ring Road faces huge traffic snarls through the day. It was in this context that he directed that feasibility studies be carried out for two new links.