NBCC diversifies into highway construction; gets contract to build 50-km four-lane highway in Uttarakhand

NBCC (India), the Navratna CPSE under Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, has added yet another aspect to its expanding business by diversifying into the road construction space. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Yogesh JP Sharma, Executive Director (Engineering) NBCC, and Anup Malik, Managing Director from Ecotourism Development Corporation of Uttarakhand (EDCUL) in the presence of Harak Singh Rawat, Minister for Forest, Government of Uttarakhand, to construct an eco-tourism circuit along Kotdwar-Ramnagar Kandi Road in Uttarakhand. The 50-km four-lane highway road project will be partly straight road and partly elevated road, like flyover, bridge, etc, to allow for free movement of wild animals underneath. The project will be developed under Green Infrastructure or the Green Road Model and is estimated to cost Rs 2,000 crore. The Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun will be the partner institute of NBCC for ecological planning of the project which will be conducted through Satellite data. Dr Anoop Kumar Mittal, Chairman cum Managing Director, said, “NBCC is always scouting for growth opportunities in existing and new sectors. With the present government’s thrust towards roads and highways construction, we foresee immense opportunities in this space.” NBCC is already an executing partner in government’s flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in Odisha, Bihar, West Bengal and Tripura, where it is constructing rural roads. The Kotdwar-Ramnagar Kandi road, passing through the Jim Corbett National Park, Garhwal and Kumaon Mandals, will be interconnected and the distance of Kotdwar, Kalagarh and Ramnagar from Dehradun will be greatly reduced. The challenging aspect of the project is the road stretch traversing through the National Park, requiring an ecological balance of ‘development with conservation’. Focusing on the environment and wildlife preservation, the company will be executing the work by adopting green initiatives. The scope of work will also include allied services such as maintenance works, public convenience sites, etc. Due to rapid urbanisation across India, the Navratna CPSE is developing around 35.28 million sq ft of projects in various sectors and has an outstanding order book of more than Rs 85,000 crore.