India Will Build More National Highways, Rail Lines During 2015-2025 Decade Than It Has Cumulatively Done Between 1950 and 2015

India is on course to build more national highways and rail lines during the decade ending 2025 than it has cumulatively done between 1950 and 2015, a report said on Wednesday.

The total length of national highways is expected to reach 1.8 lakh kilometres, while that of the railway lines 1.2 lakh kilometres by 2025, Bank of America Securities India said in a report.

When it comes to the rail network, the nation had only 10,000 kilometres of rail lines in 1950, which rose to 63,000 kilometres in 2015. But it is slated to touch 1.2 lakh kilometres in 2025, the report said.

The port capacity which was only 777 MTPA in 1995 rose to 1,911 MTPA in 2015 and is on course to more than double to 3,000 MTPA by 2025, it said. The country has been rapidly augmenting transportation and basic infrastructure capacity across sectors such as highways and railways since 2015.

Basic infrastructure like sanitation access has touched 89 per cent of the population in 2021 from 43 per cent in 2015; cooking gas coverage reached 100 per cent in 2021 from 56 per cent in 2015; 96 per cent households have electricity access now up from 56 per cent in 2000; tap water coverage is 52 per cent now from 13 per cent in 2015 and is likely to be 100 per cent coverage by 2024; piped gas connections is at 10 million now from 2.5 million in 2015; and affordable rural housing is at 25 million now up from 1 million in 2015, the report said.

(With inputs from PTI)