The Narendra Modi government has built around 73% more national highways in its first four years till 2017-18 compared with the last four years’ in office of the previous UPA dispensation beginning 2010-11.
Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority of his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Rs3 lakh crore (Rs3 trillion) has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 km of highways.
Minister for Road Transport, Highways, Shipping, Water Resources and Ganga Rejuvenation Nitin Gadkari will inaugurate the upgraded 4-lane NH-15 from Amritsar to Bhatinda and NH-64 from Zirakpur to Bhatinda in Punjab on Monday.
Construction of national highways in India hit a record 10,000 km in the year ended March 31 after the government stepped up the pace of implementation and awarding contracts.
A 300 per cent surge in land acquisition costs over the last five years, up from Rs 0.8crore per hectare in FY13 to Rs 3.20 crore during the first nine months of FY18, has impacted new projects in the country’s highways sector — one of the few infrastructure success stories under the NDA government.
A Mitsubishi Corporation-led Japanese consortium has agreed to acquire 20% interest in Cube Highways and Infrastructure Private Ltd, for an estimated Rs 2,500 crore.
Infrastructure and irrigation services in Rajasthan are set to take a new leap on December 15 when BJP government will be celebrating programs on its 4th anniversary.
India plans to develop its coastal areas into an engine of growth. Accordingly, it is readying highway and road projects to better connect these areas including ports with hinterland.
The government has approved plan for constructing 1,000km of expressways under NHDP Phase-VI, including sections of high density corridors of Vadodara-Mumbai (400 km), Delhi-Meerut (66 km), Bangalore-Chennai (334 km), Delhi –Jaipur (261Km ), Delhi-Chandigarh (249 Km), Kolkata-Dhanbad (227 Km) and Delhi-Agra (200 km), Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Radhakrishnan informed the Lok Sabha on Thursday in reply to a question.
The China-Pakistan Friendship Highway runs over 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) from the far western Chinese city of Kashgar through the world’s highest mountain pass and across the border.
