Road ministry has started preparation for a new phase of national highway development to connect every district headquarter with NHs. To be named as NHDP-VIII, this would cover about 7,300 km roads, which would be made at least two lanes.Sources said since these are newly declared NHs, their widening work can be taken up on government funding mode. None of the project is likely to cross Rs 500 crore.

This means the road transport and highways ministry can approve all these projects and thereby fast tracking construction work.“We are going to come out with this new phase. How and who will undertake these works, whether NHAI or state PWDs or the ministry , will be decided later. These projects can take off quickly since land availability for two lanes should not be a problem,“ said an official. At present, there are seven NHDP phases covering different programmes.The progress has been dismal in phase-VI and VII.

Source-timesofindia.indiatimes.com

The World Bank has approved a $500 million loan for the National Highways Inter connectivity Improvement Project in India to improve the national highway network’s connectivity with economically lagging and remote areas.

 

 

The project will focus on three low-income states – Rajasthan, Bihar and Orissa – and on less developed regions in Karnataka and West Bengal, a press release from the Bank said.

 

 

The release said that, In recent years, there has been an increasing recognition of the importance of improving transport connectivity in remote and economically lagging areas which do not fall under the National Highways Development Programme (NHDP).

 

 

“Some 43% of the primary highway network, also known as the non-NHDP network, has been identified for development. Considerable stretches of the non-NHDP network requires strengthening and upgradation, and suffer from connectivity gaps. Substantial portions of these roads are intermediate or single-lane highways and have poor traveling conditions,” it said.

 

 

“Over the years India’s core highway network has seen significant improvement. However, over 40% of thenetwork suffers from major connectivity gaps and requires better maintenance and upgradation. These roads often serve as the primary or the sole transport link to several remote and economically lagging regions. By providing better connectivity and strong institutions, the project will help states achieve fastersocial and economic benefits,” said Mr Onno Ruhl, World Bank Country Director for India.

 

 

The National Highways Interconnectivity Improvement Project, approved on October 29, will upgrade and widen about 1,120 km of existing single/intermediate lane National Highways to two-lane in Bihar, Orissa and Rajasthan and in less developed regions of Karnataka and West Bengal.

 

 

Other key components of the project include enhancing the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to better manage the highway network.

 

 

Recognizing that road safety is a critical issue in the country today, the project will strengthen road safety management systems with the objective of reducing fatalities and serious injuries from road accidents in the country.

 

 

“Road safety in India continues to be a major concern. Road accident death rate in India is ten times the levels seen in the European Union and is costing the economy an estimated 3% of the GDP on an annual basis. This project will focus on road safety by strengthening capacity, improving data collection and training,” Mr Ruhl added.

 

 

The project will focus on improving road accident data collection and analysis at central and state levels through implementation of the Road Accident Database Management System (RADMS) in project states; strengthen road safety capacity at the central level; and focus on training.

 

 

“The project will contribute to economic growth both locally in the project area and at the regional level by removing barriers to connectivity. It will develop priority highways within the non-NHDP network; implement a range of contracting and institutional reform measures; and will have specific interventions for process improvements, network monitoring and management, and updating of standards and specifications, with particular emphasis on road safety,” said Mr Pratap Tvgssshrk, senior transport specialist and the project’s task team leader.

 

 

Overall the project will help road users have improved access to highways and transport services and benefit from the savings in travel time and transportation costs. Other expected positive outcomes of the project include improved access to a larger number of economic opportunities, better health services, better access to higher levels of education, and improved road safety.

 

 

The loan, from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a 5-year grace period, and a maturity of 18 years, the release added.

 

 

NNN

 

Source-http://netindian.in

NEW DELHI: The government today approved a road project in Gujarat, entailing Rs 1,756 crore expenditure, under its flagship Gujarat under its flagship road building programme NHDP.”The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given its approval for four/two laning of the Gadu-Dwarka section of National Highway-8E in Gujarat under the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) Phase IV on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT-Annuity) in Design, Build,Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) pattern,” an official statement said.It said the cost of the project is estimated at Rs 1,756.36 crore including the cost of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other pre-construction activities.The total length of the road will be about 209.89 km, out of which 119.7 km will be four laned and 90.19 km will be two laned with paved shoulders, it added.

The project will expedite improvement of infrastructure in Gujarat and also reduce the time and cost of travel for traffic, particularly heavy traffic, plying between Gadu and Dwarka.

This road stretch links a number of sea ports on the western coast of India, apart from coastal places like Dwarka, Porbandar and Somnath.

The statement said the development of this stretch will also help in uplifting the socio-economic condition of this region and increase employment potential of local labourers for project activities.

Source-http://economictimes.indiatimes.com

NEW DELHI: The government today approved two highways projects in Maharashtra, including JNPT Port road project under its flagship road building programme NHDP, entailing a total expenditure of Rs 3,001.19 crore.

The projects for widening of four laning of Solapur- Yedeshi section of NH 211 and 6/8 laning of JNPT Port road project of Mumbai JNPT Port Road Company were approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).

“The CCEA has given its approval for four laning of the Solapur-Yedeshi section of National Highway-211 under the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) Phase IV on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT-Annuity) in Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) pattern,” an official statement said.

The cost of the 99 km project is estimated to be Rs 1,057.82 crore including the cost of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other pre-construction activities.

The project will expedite improvement of infrastructure in the state and also reduce the time and cost of travel for traffic, particularly heavy traffic, plying between Solapur and Yedeshi.

Development of this stretch will also help in uplifting the socio-economic condition of this region and increase employment potential for local labourers for project activities, it said.

About the Jawahar Lal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) Port Road Project of the Mumbai JNPT Port Road Company (MJPRCL), the statement said it will be build on BOT-Annuity mode in Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) pattern.

“The cost is estimated to be Rs 1943.37 crore including the cost of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other pre-construction activities,” it said.

The total length of the road will be approximately 43.912 kms of which 20.95 km will be of 6-laning and 22.962 kms will be of 8-laning, it added.

The project will expedite improvement of infrastructure in the state and also reduce the time and cost of travel for traffic, particularly heavy traffic, going towards JNPT.

The project corridor highway consists of NH-4B and NH-348. This network connects the JNPT, including its proposed Navi Mumbai International Airport in Maharashtra.

Development of this stretch will also help in uplifting the socio-economic condition of this region of Maharashtra, the statement said, adding, it will also increase employment potential for local labourers for project activities.

Source-http://economictimes.indiatimes.com

NEW DELHI: Highways regulator NHAI has set a an expenditure target of Rs 11,885 crore for 2013-14 on its many projects, including flagship road building scheme NHDP.The NHAI is tasked to implement various road projects of about 50,000 kms, of which widening of about 21,000 km has already been completed.”The National Highways Authority of India(NHAI) has earmarked Rs 11,885 crore on the projects for this fiscal,” a Road Transport and Highways Ministry official told PTI.

The total cost of about 50,000 km projects is about Rs 2 lakh crore and about half of which has already been spent, the official said.

The National Highways Development Project (NHDP) aims to build 34,108 km in four phases and it has so far completed widening of 7,501 km while work is under way for 11,459 km more.

The balance of 15,148 kms are still to be awarded, the official said.

NHDP is a project to upgrade, rehabilitate and widen major highways in India to international standards.

Projects worth Rs 3 lakh crore are likely to be bid out under its seven phases.

Concerned over the slow progress of projects under NHDP, a Parliamentary panel had recently asked the ministry to take steps for expediting them in order to attract private investment.

The official said as far as other ambitious projects like North-South & East-West Corridors are concerned, only 372 km has been left for award of work as 611 km is under implementation, while the major chunk 6,159 has already been completed.

The North-South (NS) Corridor connects Srinagar with Kanyakumari, while the East-West (EW) corridor connects Porbandar with Silchar. The total length of the NS-EW network is 7,142 km.

The project was originally scheduled to be completed in 2009 but as per officials the same was delayed due to problems in land acquisition and law and order in some parts.

The Ministry has already taken the issue with state governments asking their support for expediting the project.

Source-http://economictimes.indiatimes.com

“The largest highway project in India, the Golden Quadrilateral project was launched in 2001 as part of National Highways Development Project (NHDP).”

“An efficient road network is essential for a large country like India to maintain national integration and sociology-economic development.”