The contract was signed by the state PWD minister Gulab Singh on behalf of the Himachal Pradesh Road Infrastructure Development Corporation and by Li Guangsheng, director, Long Jian Road & Bridge Ltd, state-owned Chinese company.
"The contract envisaged execution of the work in difficult mountainous terrain and harsh climatic conditions. It involves construction of 15 bridges, 280 culverts and 6.5 km high retaining walls, 5.5 km of covered foot path and 30 rain shelters on the 80-km road," said the PWD minister.
Singh said the widening of the road will benefit fruit and vegetable growers of the fertile Shimla district. "The project will be completed within the specified period of 36 months," said Guangsheng.
The company is already building the Mehatpur-Una Road in the Una district at a cost of Rs 126 crore.