Punj Lloyd and Varah Infra bag highway project linking India, Myanmar, Thailand

The Punj Lloyd and Varaha Infra JV has recently bagged contract awards from NHAI for the construction of a two-lane highway in the Kalewa-Yargi section of the proposed India-Myanmar-Thailand (IMT) Trilateral Highway. With the construction of the highway, India and Thailand will be connected by road through Myanmar. Reports suggest that the120-km-long road section is estimated to cost Rs 1,177 crore. India has already built the 132 km section, referred to as Friendship Highway, from the border town of Tamu to Kalewa. A separate contract is underway for upgradation of 69 bridges along the Tamu-Kalewa stretch. As per reports, NHAI officials will meet their Myanmar counterparts to ensure at least 80 per cent land availability to begin construction. A detailed project report (DPR) is in process for the construction of the Rih-Tedim road, which will then connect the Trilateral Highway through Zokhawthar-Rih border in Mizoram. As of now, Myanmar is only connected by road through Moreh in Manipur. India is planning to extend road connectivity to the entire CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam) region. According to reports, a survey for introducing the rail connectivity in the region is already underway. Japan has shown interest in funding and collaboration with India on the trilateral rail project.    The government has initiated projects to improve the road and rail connectivity to the north-eastern states. As part of the project, a DPR is launched to build a new road-cum-rail bridge at Dhubri near the Bengal-Assam border. India has recently completed the construction of a 9-km-long Dhola-Sadia bridge at the Assam-Arunachal border. Another 5-km-long bridge at Bogibeel over Brahmaputra is nearing completion.