NHAI settled 60 disputes for Rs 4,076 cr vs claims of Rs 14,590 in FY22

The authority had settled disputes worth Rs 14,207 crore for Rs 5,313 crore in FY21, with settlement amount being 37% of claimed amount

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) settled 60 dispute cases for Rs 4,076 crore with contractors and concessionaires in the financial year 2021-22.

The settlement amount comes against claims made for Rs 14,590 crore, the authority said.

NHAI had settled disputes worth Rs 14,207 crore for Rs 5,313 crore in the fiscal before that, with settlement amount being 37 per cent of the claimed amount.

In 2021-22, the highways authority's settlement amount accounted for almost 28 per cent of the claimed amount.

"In its endeavor for faster settlement of claims through conciliation and reduce liabilities thereby, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has rigorously started the process of conciliation by constituting three Conciliation Committees of Independent Experts (CCIE) of three members each," a release by NHAI said.

CCIEs comprise retired officials from the judiciary, public administration experts, and senior experts from finance and private sector.

The authority has also constituted 97 Dispute Resolution Boards (DRBs) so far for the resolution of various issues at project sites. NHAI says that these three-member bodies have helped in faster resolution of concerns that often lead to delays and stalling in important projects.

"Besides reducing legal hassles, these (DRBs) have helped in saving legal expenses and resulted in faster execution of the projects."

As of 2021-22, the authority has settled 155 out of the 251 cases that have been referred to CCIEs. The successful settlements cost NHAI Rs 13,067 crore against dispute claims worth Rs 38,747 crore.