The Ganga driveway project would get delayed by at least two years from its earlier commissioning year of 2017.

The 23.5-km-long ambitious project, which after completion would ensure hassle-free movement between west and east Patna, has hit a roadblock because of delay in land acquisition.

The construction firm, which is executing the project, has requested the state to extend the project deadline.

The Bihar State Road Development Corporation Ltd (BSRDCL), a wing of the road construction department, which had awarded the construction work to Hyderabad-based Navayuga Engineering Company Ltd, has received the application to extend the deadline of the project from the executing firm.

Land acquisition has become the biggest hurdle for the project, as the executing agency is yet to acquire 57 acres of private and 93 acres of government land out of 530 acres required for the project.

"We are going through the application and it is a normal procedure to extend the deadline as there is no other option. Going by the present work pace, the project would be ready by 2019. Many projects of the road construction department are pending because of land acquisition," a senior BSRDCL official said.

In October 2013, chief minister Nitish Kumar had laid the foundation stone of the Rs 3,160-crore project, which has its starting point at Digha Ghat (near the rail-cum-road bridge). However, two years down the line, nothing much has been done.

The cost of Rs 2,770 crore has been allotted towards meeting the construction expenditure and the remaining funds (Rs 390 crore) was allotted for land acquisition.

The delay in the acquisition is likely to escalate the project cost to Rs 3,500 crore.

Apart from the land acquisition problem, the work is also going on at slow place and it can be understood from the fact that in two years just 126 piling work has been completed out of the 644.

Even deputy chief minister Tejaswi, who heads the road construction department, expressed disappointment over the slow pace of work and has decided to make random inspection of the construction site after the Assembly session gets over on December 8.

"The construction firm is saying they have completed 35 per cent work but I am aware that it is not the case. I have convened meetings on December 10 and 11 in which officials of the department, Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam Ltd and Bihar State Road Development Corporation Ltd have been called. Principal secretary Sudhir Kumar would also be present. In the two days, I will take the feedback about all the ongoing projects and after a few days, I will make a random inspection of the driveway project," he said.

The project is being executed under the engineering procurement construction mode, where the government provides the funds and the agency that takes up the work is paid according to the work carried out by it.

Once the project is completed it would reduce the travel time between Digha Ghat and Didarganj.