On Friday, Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari told the media that the work on the Regional Ring Road (RRR) around Hyderabad would start in three months. He said that the northern part of the RRR has already been approved by the Centre and the preparation of a Detailed Project Report (DPR) is in the final stage. He also confirmed to the Telangana government that the Centre would consider its request for approving the southern part of the project. Gadkari said about laying the foundation stone and dedication to the country of 12 national highways and 7 Central Road and Infrastructure Fund (CRIF) projects. The projects of a total length of 460 km are evaluated to cost Rs 8,000 crore. The Minister complimented the Telangana government for its offer to pay a 50% price for the acquisition of lands for the project. Gadkari suggested to the state government to have industrial clusters, planned cities, and logistic parks along with the RRR and obtain lands for them. He said that the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is also building logistic parks. The suggested RRR Ring Road will traverse around Hyderabad at an average distance of 40 km to 50 km, and it will have about 340 km in length. The overall price of the project will be Rs 16,003 crore. Telangana’s Roads and Buildings Minister Vemula Prashanth Reddy told the media that the land acquisition work for the 158-km long northern part would be expedited and achieved during the current financial year. The southern part, which will be 182 km long, is yet to be announced as a National Highway by the Union Ministry. Gadkari defined Hyderabad as a world-class city in the information technology sector and a growth engine for the nation. He said a lot of development is occurring around the city. He said if Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of Atmanirbhar Bharat and the $5 trillion economy is to be fulfilled, Telangana will also have to become a strong and prosperous state. He assured that the road infrastructure of Telangana will be at par with the US by the end of 2024. He said a total amount of Rs 3 lakh crore would have been spent on national highway infrastructure in the state from 2014 to 2024. Image Source Also read: Gadkari lays foundation for 17 highway, CRIF projects in Telangana