Delhi - Meerut Expressway To Get Air Ambulance Service, NHAI Plans Helipad Near Dasna

To facilitate air ambulance service in case of accidents or medical emergencies on the Delhi Meerut Expressway (DME), the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said they have asked a private party to develop a helipad near Dasna.

“We have roped in a private player who is developing a helipad near Dasna. This helipad will be used to operate a helicopter as an air ambulance in case of accidents or medical emergencies,” Arvind Kumar, project director, NHAI, told Hindustan Times.

“The service will be made available on charges. Anyone who wishes to use the helicopter as an air ambulance will have to take the patient to the helipad from where the patient can be airlifted to a healthcare facility,” Kumar added.

“The private agency taking up the air ambulance project will get the necessary clearances, including the one from the ministry of civil aviation,” Kumar said.

The 82-kilometre long Delhi-Meerut Expressway connects Delhi with Meerut in western Uttar Pradesh (UP). A sum of Rs 8,346 crore is spent on the project.

The highway reduces the commute time between the two cities to 45 minutes from the current 1.5 to 2 hours.

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway project is being implemented in four packages. The first package includes an 8.72 km long 6-lane expressway and 8-lane NH 24 from Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to the Ghazipur border, completed in June 2018.

The second package of the project is a 19.28 km long 6-lane expressway, 8-lane NH 24 from Ghazipur border to Dasna in UP, and the third package includes 22.23 km long 6-lane NH 24 with 2+2 lane service roads on either side from Dasna to Hapur in UP.

The fourth package is a 31.78 km long greenfield 6-lane expressway from Hapur to Meerut.