A total of 489 road infrastructure projects, initially scheduled for completion by March 2025, are facing delays due to issues related to land acquisition, forest and wildlife clearances, and railway approvals, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari informed the Rajya Sabha on July 30, 2025.

In a written reply, Gadkari said that the central government is actively coordinating with state governments and relevant authorities to resolve the pending matters and accelerate project execution.

He added that cost overruns have occurred in several projects due to factors such as increased compensation for land and structures, price escalation, GST impact, and design changes required to meet Railway standards for Road Over Bridges (ROBs) and Road Under Bridges (RUBs).

“In cases of prolonged delays where further progress under the existing contract is not feasible, the contracts are terminated or foreclosed and subsequently re-awarded, with or without modifications to the project scope,” Gadkari stated.

In response to a separate query, he clarified that national highways are constructed in compliance with Indian Road Congress (IRC) specifications. The maximum design speed is 120 km/h for expressways and 100 km/h for national highways, depending on the terrain.