India to add 1 lakh km road network for national highway expansion

India has planned to add one lakh kilometres of road network as a part of its national highway expansion target in the country, taking the tally to around two lakh kilometre in the next four years.

PM Narendra Modi unveiled the mega plan during the inauguration of the PM Gati Shakti project.

The Gati Shakti project, with an estimated cost of Rs 100 lakh crore, aims to set up multi-nodal connectivity to various economic zones. A central portal has been planned and initiated for the infrastructure projects by around 16 ministries and departments.

The project also plans to strengthen NHs. The PM Gati Shakti project will add over 5,500 km of four and six-lane highways along the coastal regions.

Under the plan, the government aims to link capital cities in the seven states of the North-East, along with four-lane NH or two alternate alignments of two-lane highways each.

NH construction continues at a rapid speed even during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) told the media that India had added 1,470 km of NHs between April-May. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has added around 4,350 km of highway projects.

Earlier, NHAI completed a 25.54 km long single lane in just 18 hours. It has also laid the highest quantity of concrete on a four-lane highway in just one day.

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