Swarajya Logo
Swarajya Logo
Politics States Economy Society Business Culture Infra Defence World Books Ideas Science Technology Heritage Archives Legal Movies Sports
  • Our Views
    Politics States Economy Society Business Culture Infra Defence World Books Ideas Science Technology Heritage Archives Legal Movies Sports
  • Magazine
  • Store

About Swarajya

Swarajya is a publication by Kovai Media Private Limited.

Swarajya - a big tent for liberal right of centre discourse that reaches out, engages and caters to the new India.

editor@swarajyamag.com

Useful Links

  • About Us
  • Subscriptions Support
  • Editorial Philosophy
  • Press Kit
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Code of Conduct
  • Plagiarism Policy
  • Refund & Cancellation Policy

Useful Links

  • About Us
  • Subscriptions Support
  • Editorial Philosophy
  • Press Kit
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Code of Conduct
  • Plagiarism Policy
  • Refund & Cancellation Policy

Participate

  • Contact Us
  • Write for us
  • Style Guide
  • Jobs

Stay Connected

  • Artboard 2 Copy 6Created with Sketch.
    Artboard 2 Copy 10Created with Sketch.
    Artboard 2 Copy 7Created with Sketch.
    Artboard 2 Copy 9Created with Sketch.
  • Andriod Logo
  • IOS Logo

Infrastructure

In Charts: Understanding India's Road Revolution

Amit MishraMonday, August 28, 2023 3:25 pm IST
The Delhi Mumbai Expressway. (Nitin Gadkari/Twitter)
The Delhi Mumbai Expressway. (Nitin Gadkari/Twitter)
The Delhi Mumbai Expressway. (Nitin Gadkari/Twitter)

India's road and highway sector has experienced one of the most important and significant improvements and the country is moving towards closing the infrastructure gaps, a CII Report has said.

The report titled “The Indian Roads and Highways Sector” of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), which was launched on 26 August, has emphasized the crucial role of road infrastructure in stimulating economic growth, fostering investor confidence, generating employment, and enabling inclusive development, according to a statement.

At 63.31 lakh km, India — the seventh largest country — has the second-largest road network in the world, the report stated.

Top 5 countries by largest road networks, Global
Top 5 countries by largest road networks, Global
Top 5 countries by largest road networks, Global

The country's road length of 63.31 lakh kilometre includes 1.44 lakh km of national highways (NHs), 1.67 lakh km of state highways (SHs), and other district roads.

According to the report, India's road connectivity has improved consistently over the years and road transportation has become a focus of rapid development.

Expansion of different types of roads in India
Expansion of different types of roads in India
Expansion of different types of roads in India

Terming the National highways as the "backbone of the road infrastructure"' the report noted that over the last seven years, length of NHs has gone up by 50 per cent from 91,287 km (as of April 2014) to 1,37,625 km (as on 20 March 2021).

Article Hero Image
Article Hero Image

The report also highlights major achievements in the expansion of National Highways, which includes large increase in average annual award length, average annual construction length during FY2015 to FY2021.

"Project awards and construction in the roads and highways sector in India have increased significantly in recent years, highlighting the current government’s thrust on the sector. This is also evident in the steadily increasing road sector budget, which stood at Rs 1.18 lakh crore for fiscal 2022", said the report.

Article Hero Image
Article Hero Image

The report noted states like Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Rajasthan have played pivotal roles in driving highway projects and investments.

There are currently 599 national highways in India and the government aims to construct 23 new national highways by 2025, the report added.

Expressway Web

The report identifies expressways and access-controlled corridors as one of the key policy initiative, aimed to to upgrade and strengthen the road network in the country.

Expressways are highways that are completely access controlled to ensure unhindered flow of traffic, i.e. vehicles can enter or exit the roads from only a limited number of points. They are meant to be the highest class of roads in India, and are expected to transform user experience significantly. They are designed with superior technical and safety standards to allow speeds of up to 120 kmph.

The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) is developing 27 Greenfield corridors including five expressway of 9,860 km length at a total capital cost of Rs. 4,08,437 crore.

Article Hero Image
Article Hero Image
Article Hero Image
Article Hero Image

A new national masterplan for new Expressways for next 25 years during “Amrit Kaal” to improve efficiency of passenger and freight movement in the country is under progress, the report added.

Rural Roads

The report makes a specific mention about significant growth of rural roads in India.

According to the report, aided by the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), rural road development has also gained traction, with rural roads accounting for 71 per cent of the overall road network in India.

Article Hero Image
Article Hero Image

"Over the years, rural road development task in India has picked up at a fast pace and government is increasingly focusing on rural roads. This is because there are various economic benefits offered by the rural roads that make them equally important as national highways", noted the CII report.

Drivers and Roadblocks

The Road report identifies increasing freight traffic, rising investment, tax sops, growing urbanization, greater government initiatives and growing budgetary outlays as the growth drivers in India's road sector.

Further, it mentions that Indian road infrastructure and road construction industry, including the equipment and materials, are one of the biggest ingredients in propelling economic growth in the recent past.

However, the expansion of the infrastructure development has also been hindered due to land acquisition issues, road quality concerns, regulatory complexities, and financial issues.

"With a projected global infrastructure funding requirement of USD 3.7 trillion annually to keep pace with GDP growth, the significance of continued expansion and strengthening of India's road network remains paramount," the report concluded.

Tags
National Highways
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)
Expressways India
National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH)

Comments ↓

An Appeal...


 

Dear Reader,

 

As you are no doubt aware, Swarajya is a media product that is directly dependent on support from its readers in the form of subscriptions. We do not have the muscle and backing of a large media conglomerate nor are we playing for the large advertisement sweep-stake.

 

Our business model is you and your subscription.  And in challenging times like these, we need your support now more than ever.

 

We deliver over 10 - 15 high quality articles with expert insights and views. From 7AM in the morning to 10PM late night we operate to ensure you, the reader, get to see what is just right.

 

Becoming a Patron or a subscriber for as little as Rs 1200/year is the best way you can support our efforts.

Get Swarajya in your inbox.


Magazine


Swarajya Magazine Cover Image
Merchandise

Merchandise


    Politics

    Prime Minister Modi Tops List Of Most Popular Global Leaders With 76 Per Cent Approval Rating

    Prime Minister Modi Tops List Of Most Popular Global Leaders With 76 Per Cent Approval Rating

    Swarajya Staff
    37m

    Not Like The Old Times: BJP's Feeble Victory In Rajasthan (Part II)

    Venu Gopal Narayanan
    14h

    'Cash For Query' Row: Mahua Moitra Expelled From Lok Sabha As Lower House Accepts Ethics Panel's Recommendation

    Swarajya Staff
    20h

    Economy

    Enough Of Big Bang Reforms? No Major Announcements In Next Budget, "Wait Till July 2024", Says Nirmala Sitharaman

    Enough Of Big Bang Reforms? No Major Announcements In Next Budget, "Wait Till July 2024", Says Nirmala Sitharaman

    Nishtha Anushree
    2d

    ₹58,378 Crores! Govt Set To Open Taps On Additional Welfare Spending With 2024 In Mind

    Swarajya News Staff
    2d

    India Anticipated To Be Fastest Growing In Next Three Years, Set to Become Third Largest Economy By 2030: S&P

    Nishtha Anushree
    4d

    Defence

    On This Day, In 1971, Indian Military Keeps Up Pressure: With Intense Armour Clashes In Western Pakistan, While Second Naval Raid On Karachi Looms

    On This Day, In 1971, Indian Military Keeps Up Pressure: With Intense Armour Clashes In Western Pakistan, While Second Naval Raid On Karachi Looms

    Ujjwal Shrotryia
    18h

    Indian Army Sets Sight On Future: Developing AI And Cybersecurity Tech; Can Now Interpret Enemy's Electronic Order Of Battle

    Swarajya Staff
    1d

    Indian Air Force's C-17 Globemaster-III Transport Aircraft Successfully Drops DRDO-Developed Heavy Airdrop Platform

    Swarajya Staff
    1d

    World

    After Becoming Longest-Serving President, Putin Announces Running For Election In Russia Again

    After Becoming Longest-Serving President, Putin Announces Running For Election In Russia Again

    Nishtha Anushree
    16h

    Maldives Skips Key Indian Ocean Security Meet With India And Other Neighbours, Opts For Chinese Forum Amidst Growing Tilt

    Swarajya Staff
    22h

    Azerbaijan President Accuses India And France Of Fuelling Armenia's Fire Of 'Revenge' For Loss In Nagorno-Karabakh War

    Swarajya Staff
    22h

    Culture

    From Jodhpur To Ayodhya On Bulls, Preserved Through Herbs: The Story Of Ghee To Be Used For Ram Lalla's First Aarti

    From Jodhpur To Ayodhya On Bulls, Preserved Through Herbs: The Story Of Ghee To Be Used For Ram Lalla's First Aarti

    Nishtha Anushree
    2h

    ‘Garba Of Gujarat’ Declared As Intangible Heritage By UNESCO

    Arun Kumar Das
    2d

    Gujarat's Garba Is Now In List Of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity

    Swarajya News Staff
    2d
    States

    infrastructure


    Arun Kumar Das
    1

    Indian Railways To Run 4,500 Vande Bharat Trains By 2047, Says Union Minister Scindia

    2 Mins Read
    Arun Kumar Das
    2

    Path To Prosperity: National Tourism Policy Paves The Way For Economic Boost

    1 Mins Read
    Amit Mishra
    3

    Gurugram: Haryana Government To Incorporate 'New Company' For Millennium City Metro Corridor

    2 Mins Read
    Amit Mishra
    4

    Ayodhya Airport To Be Ready By December End, Says Jyotiraditya Scindia

    2 Mins Read