Gramin Sadak Yojana: West Bengal to redevelop 10 year old roads

16 Jul 2021 CW Team

The Department of Panchayats and Rural Development Government of West Bengal is preparing to launch the third phase of the Gramin Sadak Yojana, to strengthen and widen rural roads built at least ten years ago.

Aside from completing the remaining work on the first two phases of the project, the state government has begun planning for the third phase, which aims to strengthen and widen 1,000 km of road with a width of up to 5.5 m.

The construction of these roads and the payment of the residual work will cost around Rs 2,365 crore.

This follows the successful completion of the major portion of phase 1 and 2 of the same project, which saw 25,190 km of rural roads built in Bengal between May 2011 and March.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee launched the Banglar Gramin Sadak Yojana (BGSY), and Pathasree Abhiyan, a rural road development programme, will be launched at the end of 2021.

Simultaneously, small bridges (maximum of 75 to 80 metres long) would be built in the stretch that would be widened or strengthened if necessary.

Despite the lockdown, approximately Rs 1,516 crore and Rs 1,465 crore were spent on rural road improvement in the fiscal years 2019-20 and 2020-21, respectively.

The programme resulted in the construction of 2,180 km of new roads in the state, which is the highest achievement against budget in the country.

In FY21, an additional 2,179 kilometres of new roads were built.

The state is now eligible for BGSY-III after BGSY-II awarding was completed and BGSY-I had completed more than 95%.

The Centre contributed Rs 881 crore in 2020-21, while the state contributed Rs 587.33 crore.

The Centre awarded a special incentive grant of Rs 88.31 crore for outstanding performance in rural road construction.

Image Source

Also read: BMC to redevelop and beautify Saat Rasta in central Mumbai

Technology

29 Jul 2026

AI-Enabled Workflows Lift Profitability and Productivity

Organisations modernising frontline workflows with artificial intelligence, automation and real-time data are reporting stronger financial performance, higher productivity and improved employee engagement, according to a global study by Zebra Technologies and Oxford Economics.The research covered 1,000 senior leaders across retail, manufacturing, transportation and logistics in the US, Mexico, the UK, Germany, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.In transportation and logistics, 54 per cent of companies that improved picking and packing operations reported faster operational performance, wh..

India Leads Global AI Readiness but Implementation Lags

Indian companies lead global averages across all eight artificial intelligence readiness indicators tracked by JLL, but only 19 per cent have started making changes to their workplaces, according to the JLL 2026 Future of Work Survey.The study found that 77 per cent of Indian business leaders expect AI to change their office requirements, creating a 58-percentage-point gap between awareness and implementation. The survey covered more than 2,200 CEOs, CFOs and real estate leaders across 21 countries during the first quarter of 2026.Despite concerns over automation, 58 per cent of Indian leaders..

Three WOLFF Cranes Build Riyadh Cable-Stayed Bridges

Three WOLFF 180 B luffing jib cranes are supporting the construction of two cable-stayed bridges alongside the existing Wadi Laban Bridge in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The project is being developed for the Royal Commission for Riyadh City and executed by the ICRC joint venture comprising IC Ictas and Al Rashid Trading & Contracting Company.The cranes are handling lifting operations including formwork, reinforcement, concrete placement, work platforms, surveying equipment and other construction materials. Each crane is fitted with a 40 m jib, reaches a hook height of 157 m and offers a maximum ..