Delhi Dehradun Expressway: Just a few months after the inauguration of the Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, the matter of finding potholes on it has now reached Parliament. The central government admitted in the Rajya Sabha that two potholes were found on the expressway. However, the government said that the road is still under the 10-year defect liability period, so the construction company repaired it as part of its responsibility without any government expense. At the same time, the government did not tell why the potholes were formed on the new road.

What did the government say in Rajya Sabha?

Answering the question of MP Ashok Singh in the Rajya Sabha, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said that the Delhi-Dehradun Access Controlled Highway is currently in the defect liability period of 10 years. He said that during this period two potholes were found on the expressway. The contractor, fulfilling his responsibility as per the contract, repaired both the potholes at his own expense. For this the government did not have to bear any additional expense.

Government did not answer on the reason for potholes

The government in its reply did not clarify the reason for the formation of potholes on the newly constructed road. The only reply given was that the road was under guarantee period and when any defect was found, the construction company rectified it.

What is defect liability period?

Defect liability period is the fixed period in which the contractor is responsible to correct any technical defect or construction defect related to road construction. During this period, the entire cost of repair is borne by the construction company and not the government. This period has been fixed at 10 years for Delhi-Dehradun Expressway.

How did the controversy start?

The Delhi-Dehradun Expressway was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 14 April 2026. This 210 kilometer long expressway has been constructed at a cost of approximately Rs 12 thousand crores. A few months after the inauguration, videos of potholes on the expressway near Shamli during monsoon went viral on social media. After this, questions started being raised regarding the quality of the road and safety of passengers. The opposition also cornered the government on this issue.

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Earlier, in the field level response of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), waterlogging and incomplete drainage system were cited as possible reasons. However, in the reply given in the Rajya Sabha, the government did not mention the reason for the potholes.

Action taken against 103 agencies in three years

In response to the same question, the government also said that action has been taken against 103 agencies, contractors and companies during the last three years in cases of poor quality or violation of contract terms in National Highway projects. Blacklisting, imposing fines and other punitive measures were taken against them. According to the government, action was taken against 29 agencies in the year 2023-24, 29 agencies in 2024-25 and 45 agencies in 2025-26.

If you use FASTag, then this news is very important. The government has implemented a new rule regarding Toll Liability under the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 2026. Now, if toll is outstanding on any vehicle, it will not get important services like NOC, Fitness Certificate and National Permit. This means it will be difficult to sell the car or get necessary approvals. The government aims to stop toll tax evasion, strengthen the FASTag system and improve traffic flow on highways. Many times vehicles pass through the toll plaza despite technical issues or low balance. Now in such cases the unpaid toll will be directly linked to the vehicle record. “Unpaid Toll User” has been clearly defined in the new rules. This step is also important for the future Multi-Lane Free Flow Tolling system. Therefore, it is now very important to check FASTag balance timely.

National highways maintenance: Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday that the government has approved a short -term maintenance contract (STMC) in the current financial year (FY 25) for the maintenance of the National Highway (NH) network in the current financial year (FY 25). It will cost Rs 2,842 crore. Performance based maintenance (PBMC) works have also been approved in 6,118 km length road. Its cost is Rs 6,757 crore.

Mechanism for Maintenance of National Highway

In a written statement in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister said that the government has preferred the maintenance of the current National Highway Network and has prepared a mechanism to ensure the maintenance and repair of all NH sections through a maintenance agency. At present, 1,310 national highway projects in length are under construction at a cost of Rs 8.11 lakh crore in the country at a cost of Rs 8.11 lakh crore.

Contract for so long

The contract period for STMC tasks usually occurs between 1-2 years. The contract of PBMC work is for about 5-7 years. The government is encouraging new technology and methods to keep national highways durable for a long time and reduce the need for maintenance.

The Union Minister said that the government assesses the road situation before the start of work and the certificate of completion to be completed before the certificate issue. Evaluation is done at regular intervals of six months of completion of the work to ensure that the quality of roads is fine.

Work on advanced traffic management system also started

Apart from this, the government has also started work on the installation of the Advanced Traffic Management System (ATMS) on four lanes and long national highways.

Gadkari said, “ATMS helps in effective monitoring of highways with the help of many different types of electronic devices, which takes less time in the response of an event and improves road safety.”

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