Indian Economy News

Capital expenditure on National Highways has significantly increased from about Rs. 51,000 Crore (US$ 6.1 billion) in 2013-14 to more than Rs. 2,40,000 Crore (US$ 28.8 billion) in 2022-23

The Ministry holds the principal responsibility for the development and maintenance of National Highways (NHs). The budgetary allocation for the Ministry has witnessed a significant increase from approximately Rs. 31,130 Crore (US$ 3.7 billion) in FY14 to Rs. 2,70,435 Crore (US$ 32.5 billion) in FY23. Capital expenditure on NHs has surged from about Rs. 51,000 Crore (US$ 6.1 billion) in FY14 to surpass Rs. 2,40,000 Crore (US$ 28.8 billion) in FY22-23. Recognized as a pivotal driver of economic growth, the infrastructure sector has played a crucial role in fostering rapid development.

This augmented budgetary allocation has facilitated the expansion of the NH network in the country from around 91,287 km in March 2014 to approximately 1,46,145 km in FY23, encompassing states such as Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and the North-eastern States.

The length of the 4 Lane plus NH network, including High-Speed Corridors, has experienced an impressive growth of over 250%, advancing from about 18,371 km in March 2014 to approximately 46,179 km. Concurrently, the length of less than 2 Lane NHs has decreased from roughly 27,517 km in March 2014 to about 14,870 km, now constituting only about 10% of the NH network. The Ministry has prioritized the development of greenfield High-Speed Corridors, initiating projects on 21 greenfield access-controlled corridors, including expressways, with work on approximately 3,336 km already completed.

The Ministry has successfully completed various flagship projects or their sections, contributing to enhanced ease of movement. Notable achievements include the completion of the Delhi-Dausa-Lalsaut section (229 km) and the entire section in Madhya Pradesh (210 km) of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, the Amritsar-Bhatinda-Jamnagar stretch (470 km) in the State of Rajasthan, the Suryapet–Khammam section of Hyderabad-Vishakhapatnam, the Indore-Hyderabad route (175 km), the new Brahmaputra Bridge near Tezpur in Assam on NH-37A (old), and the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project in Mizoram. Furthermore, the completion of the Shillong Nongstoin-Tura section of NH-44E & NH 127B in Meghalaya marks another significant milestone in the Ministry's list of accomplishments.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.