NHAI finalises contract for 2-laning Kochi-Munnar highway

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has recently finalised the contract for the proposed two-laning of the 121-km Kochi-Dhanushkodi National Highway-85 section from Kochi to Munnar. The 121-km length of the narrow NH-85 that runs between Kochi (Kundannoor) and Munnar will be converted into a two-lane highway as part of a Rs 7.90 billion project. The work will begin in January 2023 and will be finished in 30 months, by mid-2025. The corridor will include paved shoulders and retention walls along the stretch to prevent landslides. Landslips frequently occur in the mountains over which the road runs, necessitating significant investment in often ineffective damage-control measures. Moreover, such mishaps restricted driving for days at a time, cutting off people from the mainland. The completion of the Kochi-Dhanushkodi NH-85 project, which is a main entry point for tourists travelling to Munnar from Kochi, is likely to boost tourism. A four-lane Greenfield National Highway (NH) in the Kochi-Munnar-Theni corridor of about 151 km is being planned and the project is expected to improve connectivity on the route further. Once completed, tourists and others are expected to take the newly-upgraded corridor, while commercial traffic would take the greenfield NH which is part of the initiative to improve connectivity between Kochi and Tuticorin ports and would take a different alignment. See also: PM unveils Nagpur's Maharashtra Samriddhi MahamargGadkari inaugurates 7 NH projects worth Rs 24.44 bn in MP