M’lore: High-tech Four-lane Road from Kundapur to Talapady Soon

May 2, 2008

Govind D Belgaumkar/The Hindu

Work on the 90-km stretch likely to begin after the monsoon season
Contractors to apply for pre-qualification before May 30
Work to be awarded on build, operate and transfer basis

Mangalore, May 2: A smooth ride on a high-tech road from Kundapur in Udupi district to Talapady on Karnataka-Kerala border may be a possibility very soon. However, vehicle users will have to pay for using the road.

The work is being taken up under the third phase of National Highway Development Project (NHDP), aimed at building world-class highways to fuel the growth of the economy.

Although the work on the stretch between Nanthur and Surathkal has been tardy, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has invited tenders for the remaining 90-km stretch. The Surathkal-Nanthur stretch has been taken up under the Port Connectivity Project of the NHDP.

Process

Considering that the process of awarding the tender takes a few months, as suggested in the authority’s website, the 90-km project implementation may begin only after the monsoon season.

The authority intends to pre-qualify six applicants, who will be eligible to bid for the project. In the next step, the bidders have to submit their financial offers for the project.

The NHAI has set May 30, against the previous May 5, as the deadline for contractors to apply for pre-qualification. Queries from the applicants will be entertained till May 5, after which a conference will be organised to clear their doubts on May 7. It will be a tolled road to be awarded on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis. A special purpose company will be created to undertake the project implementation.

The contractor winning the project will have to design, engineer, finance, construct, operate and maintain the road till its transfer to the NHAI.

Scope of work

The scope of the project includes, rehabilitation of displaced people, improvement and widening of the existing carriageway to four-lane standards with construction of new pavements, rehabilitation of existing pavement, construction and/or rehabilitation of major and minor bridges, culverts, road intersections, interchanges, drains, and the operation and maintenance thereof.

Features

The NHDP hopes to provide enhanced safety features on the roads taken up for four-laning or six-laning, besides better riding surface, better traffic management and noticeable signage, divided carriageways and service roads, grade separators, over bridges and underpasses, bypasses and wayside amenities. The third phase envisages construction of more than 12,000-km of road. Of this, about 10,000 km is yet to be awarded, according to the NHAI website. Under NHDP, the authority has almost completed the golden quadrilateral which connects the four metros.
source:www.daijiworld.com