Gadkari Sanctions Rs 50,560 Crore National Highways to AP

December 28, 2015

AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu explaining the progress of development works to Union Road Transport and Highways minister Nitin Gadkari (2nd right), Union Urban Development minister M Venkaiah Naidu (right) before laying the foundation stone for Kanaka Durga flyover in Vijayawada on Saturday. Vijayawada MP Kesineni Nani is also seen | P Ravindra Babu | EPS

AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu explaining the progress of development works to Union Road Transport and Highways minister Nitin Gadkari (2nd right), Union Urban Development minister M Venkaiah Naidu (right) before laying the foundation stone for Kanaka Durga flyover in Vijayawada on Saturday. Vijayawada MP Kesineni Nani is also seen | P Ravindra Babu | EPS

VIJAYAWADA: Andhra Pradesh will get Rs 50,560 cr worth national highways (a total of 3,092 km in length) in addition to the Rs 15,000 cr worth NH projects already under progress in the state, with an assurance of more in the coming days.

This was announced by Union Minister for Road Transport Nitin Gadkari after laying the foundation stone for Kanka Durga Flyover to be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 447.88 cr, along with upgradation of the Vijayawada-Machilipatnam section of NH 65, upgradation of NH 30 from Ibrahimpatnam Circle to Chandragudem and upgradation of NH 216 between Kathipudi and Kakinada.

Addressing a public gathering, Gadkari said roads are vital for development. He said when he took over the ministry, road construction was just 2 km a day which today is 18 km a day. He said that by March end he wanted it to be 30 km a day.

“In AP, Rs 15,000 cr worth projects are under progress this year and the state has many expectations from my department. I am now announcing new NH projects and it is for the state government which has to do the needed land acquisition and sumbit Detailed Project Reports. I promise to have the project online by end of December next year,” he said.

With regard to the proposed 180-km outer ring road for the new capital Amaravati, at  an estimated cost of Rs 20,000 cr, the Union minister said that the ORR would be an eight-lane, access-controlled expressway. It would be similar to the under construction expressway between Delhi and Meerut.

Expressing concern over the increasing road accidents (5 lakh a year in the country with 1.5 lakh deaths) Gadkari said the proposed new Motor Vehicle Act would revolutionise the whole system. Stating 30 per cent of the driving licences were fake, he added that the government was planning to set up driver training institutes in every assembly constituency, which would help in issuing driving licences in a foolproof manner.  Stressing  the importance of using waterways for transportation of goods and people, Gadkari said that AP had a great potential in this regard. He said already a survey works of the waterways was under progress in the state and sought the cooperation of the state government in this regard.

 

Thanking Gadkari for the announcement of Rs 65,000 cr worth road projects, the CM said they were beyond his expectations and added that he was very happy. Stating that handholding by the Centre was still needed as the state was yet to develop a lot, he added that he would submit a blueprint and an action plan with regard to the Amaravati ORR project to Gadkari for approval within a month and wanted the projects to be completed expeditiously. He said new roads linking Rayalaseema with the new capital would reduce the travel time. He also requested for a new road along the lengthy coast of the state and wanted it to be done in a single stretch and not in a piecemeal manner. He said it would  help in port-road connectivity and also give a boost to tourism.

Vijayawada MP Kesineni Srinivas presided over the meeting. Union Minister of State YS Chowdary, MPs, MLAs, MLCs and others were present.

Sources:  The New Indian Express

 

 

Indian Government Launches Green Highways Policy

December 28, 2015

The Centre has launched the Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification and Maintenance) Policy 2015, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari told Lok Sabha on Thursday. The policy aims to develop eco-friendly National Highways with the participation of the community, farmers, NGOs, the private sector, government agencies, and the forest department, Gadkari said during Lok Sabha’s Question Hour on Thursday.

Elaborating on the benefits, the minister said that this initiative would help around 10 lakh people get employment opportunities.

According to Gadkari, the key objectives of this policy are to evolve a framework for plantation along national highways, to reduce the impact of air pollution and dust as trees and shrubs are known to be a natural sink for air pollutants, to reduce the impact of the increasing noise pollution, to arrest soil erosion, to prevent glare from the headlights of incoming vehicles, etc.

The transport ministry has already decided that, henceforth, for the work related to making the highways more green, 1 per cent of civil work costs should be added separately while arriving at the total project cost of national highways being built, he added.

Gadkari also appealed to all MPs to come forward to help the Road Transport Ministry to implement the green initiative successfully.

During the Lok Sabha Question Hour session, the minister also highlighted the fact that around 1.5 lakh people die in road accidents every year in India. “Around 1.5 lakh people die in around 5 lakh road accidents every year in the country. This is a huge number,” Gadkari said.

He explained that due to such a large number of accidents, the country loses around 55,000 crore annually, which is 3 per cent of the GDP.

The minister also added that during the 12th Five Year Plan, private investment to the tune of approximately 1,78,000 crore is required for the development of National Highways out of the total requirement of 4,83,000 crore.

Gadkari went on to speak about the hurdles which are generally faced while dealing with the Road Transport and Highways Ministry and said that all problems related to execution of 95 per cent of highway projects were resolved and work on them will start very soon. In case of the remaining 5 per cent projects, efforts are on to resolve the pending issues, he said.

“Considering the importance of completing the projects, various steps have been taken by the government and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to remove the hurdles affecting the construction of national highways that includes streamlining of land acquisition and regulatory clearances, close coordination with other ministries, revamped disputes resolution mechanism, etc.,” he said.

He added that the NHAI has also decided not to award projects till all major pre-construction approvals are in place for the projects to avoid post-bid delays and litigations.

 

Sources: carandbike(NDTV venture)