India's Biggest Highway Push: 20,770 Km Out Of 26,425 Km Awarded Projects Under Bharatmala Pariyojana Completed

The Bharatmala Pariyojana, India’s biggest highway development initiative, continues to progress at a steady pace, with 20,770 km of highways completed under the ambitious iniative, the government has informed the Parliament.

Approved by the government in 2017, the project aims to construct 34,800 km of roads across the country to improve connectivity, reduce logistics costs, and support economic growth.

According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, a total of 26,425 km of road projects have been awarded under the scheme, with an estimated capital cost of Rs 8.54 lakh crore.

"Projects in 26,425 km length have been awarded under Bharatmala Pariyojana, out of which 20,770 km have been constructed so far, including 2,967 km constructed during FY 2024-25," Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday (23 July).

The awarded projects include multiple components such as economic corridors, inter-corridor routes, feeder routes, national corridors, expressways, border roads, and port connectivity roads.

Economic corridors account for 8,737 km, while expressways cover 2,422 km, and border roads and international connectivity roads total 1,619 km.

Coastal and port connectivity roads have also been awarded under the project.

On delays in execution of some projects under Bharatmala iniative, the minister said, "Various factors such as issues related to land acquisition, delays in pre-construction activities, financial difficulties faced by contractors, force majeure events, and scarcity of construction
materials etc. have resulted in delays and cost overrun in certain project".

He noted that the government has taken various initiatives to overcome these challenges and expedite project execution.

"These include streamlining and expediting the land acquisition process through Bhoomi Rashi portal, revamping the Parivesh Portal to facilitate faster forest and environmental clearances, enabling online approval of General Arrangement Drawings (GAD) for Road over Bridges (ROB) and Road under Bridges (RUB) from the Railways, and conducting review meetings at various levels with all stakeholders, including State Governments," the minister said.

"The Government is taking all necessary steps for timely completion of these project," he added.

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