India announces road projects worth over Rs6,150 crore

The union cabinet today approved road projects worth over Rs6,150 crore ($1.35 billon) for widening highways in the western region of the country.
 
The projects approved by the cabinet include the four/six-laning of a 122.87 km stretch on the Maharashtra-Goa border to Goa-Karnataka section of NH-17 in Goa under NHDP Phase III.

The project, to be completed on design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT)/BOT basis, is estimated to cost Rs1,872 crore under the DBFOT pattern. The concession period of the project will be for 23 years, including a construction period of 1,095 days.

The project will improve the road infrastructure in Goa and will facilitate reduction of the time and cost of travel for traffic. It will also add to development of tourism in the state, a government release said.

The project will help reduce the time and cost of traffic between Maharashtra-Goa border and Goa-Karnataka border section of NH-17. It will also increase the potential of employment to local labourers for the project activities, besides helping to develop tourism in the state, the release noted.

The cabinet committee on infrastructure also approved the implementation of the project for six laning of the existing four lane sections under NHDP Phase-V programme in the Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan under NHDP Phase V.

The projects to be implemented on a design, build, finance, operate and yransfer (DBFOT) basis include a 140.35 km stretch on the Pune-Satara section in Maharashtra on NH-4; a 56.16 km stretch on the Samakhiali-Gandhidham section in Gujarat on NH-8A, and a 242.51 km stretch on the Udaipur-Ahmedabad section in Rajasthan and Gujarat on NH-8.