On record
Large potholes and a road cave-in appeared on the newly inaugurated Delhi-Dehradun Expressway near Hathi Karoda village in Shamli district after monsoon rain, damaging vehicles and raising fresh questions about the quality of one of India's costliest expressway projects, inaugurated on April 14, 2026.
The official record states: "NHAI said the damage was "caused by water stagnation following heavy rainfall" rather than structural failure, blaming an incomplete cross-drainage culvert (held up by local resistance) and delayed slope-protection work caused by a land dispute."
“A ₹12,000-crore expressway that caved in at the first monsoon after opening, which the monsoon presumably found routine.”— Blunderlust Editorial Desk
Sources
- https://indianpsu.com/delhi-dehradun-expressway-potholes-quality-construction-rs-12000-crore-project/
- https://thefederal.com/category/news/flagship-expressways-crumble-under-rain-nitin-gadkari-delhi-mumbai-expressway-dehradun-249159
Visitor reviews Satire
“Twelve thousand crore, opened in April, caved in at the first monsoon, near Hathi Karoda.”
“NHAI blames water stagnation from an unfinished cross-drainage culvert, which means the drainage was never built.”
“Drove it in the dry season and it is superb. Would not care to drive it in August.”