India's first 8-lane wildlife tunnel on Delhi-Mumbai Expressway opens in August

India is set to open its first eight-lane highway tunnel beneath the Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan this August. The tunnel aims to reduce travel time significantly while preserving wildlife movement and forest ecosystem.

In Short

• India's first eight-lane tunnel beneath a tiger reserve on Delhi-Mumbai Expressway
• Tunnel located under Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan's Kota district
• Heavy vehicles will enter after communication and emergency systems pass checks

India's first eight-lane highway tunnel beneath a tiger reserve is set to open for all categories of vehicles in August on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, with safety trials for light vehicles currently underway.

The 4.9-km twin-tube tunnel lies below the Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan's Kota district on the Delhi-Vadodara section of the expressway.

The tunnel has been opened initially for cars and emergency vehicles after safety inspections were completed. Heavy vehicles and other traffic will be allowed only after further checks on safety systems and mobile network connectivity inside the tunnel are completed, officials said.

Project Director Sandeep Agrawal of the National Highways Authority of India in Kota told PTI, "The eight-lane highway tunnel on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway beneath MHTR has not yet been officially opened for all vehicle categories. Currently, only trials are underway with light vehicles such as cars."

He said the civil work on the tunnel is nearly complete, while other work inside the tunnel is continuing alongside regular testing.

Agrawal said the tunnel is expected to officially open for all vehicle categories in August, in line with directions from the Union Ministry.

An NHAI official said the phased opening and trials would continue until all safety features, including communication systems and emergency response mechanisms, are fully validated, after which the tunnel is likely to open to all categories of vehicles after July 31 on any day in August.

According to NHAI officials, the tunnel has been built entirely beneath the tiger reserve to avoid disturbing wildlife movement and to protect the forest ecosystem. Its design allows animals to move freely above the tunnel without interference from highway traffic.

The tunnel has twin tubes, each with four lanes, making it India's first eight-lane tunnel beneath a wildlife sanctuary. Officials said specialised engineering methods were used to reduce ecological impact while ensuring safe and efficient traffic flow.

The project took more than four years to complete, with engineers addressing geological and environmental challenges while following strict conservation standards. Wildlife corridors in the reserve have been maintained to ensure uninterrupted movement of tigers and other animals.

The tunnel is expected to cut travel time on the Delhi-Vadodara stretch by removing nearly 25 km of winding road through the reserve, while officials expect the full Delhi-Vadodara travel time to come down from about 20-22 hours to around 10-12 hours once the entire expressway becomes operational.

Overall, the tunnel marks a major step in combining transport infrastructure with wildlife conservation.

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