900 km road for four Himalayan shrines of Uttarakhand: Gadkari

The Centre will build a 900 km road forthe four Himalayan shrines of Uttarakhand also known as chardham, Union Minister Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari today said.
Making the announcement afterlaying the foundation stone of the 93-km Rampur-Rudrapur-Kathgodam four lane highway here Gadkari said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will himself visit the state to lay the foundation stone of the ambitious project which will make the route to the famed Himalayan shrines of Kedarnath, Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri far more convenient.
Announcing that theRampur-Rudrapur-Kathgodam four lane highway will be built on expressway pattern, Gadkari said farmers whose land will be acquired for the project will be paid a compensation four times higher than the prevailing circle rate.

Expressing concern at the spurt in road accidents in Uttarakhand, the Union Minister said there will be fewer mishaps with better roads and the Centre is working in that direction.
Gadkari said the Centre also has plans to make a 100-km road in the Gunji zone in Pithoragarh district to makethe Mansarovar Yatra more smooth.
The Union Minister also announced that rules will be framed for properly running e-rickshaws.

Some of the major recommendations of the task force
include creation of an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) Department, development of ITS architecture, standards and protocols that will help in structuring investments and delivering safe and effective transportation.

It also recommended creation of smart ports which would help usher in optimisation of space, personnel and traffic, besides single window system to help in reducing transaction costs and logistics costs involved in the movement of cargo.
Other recommendations include technology implementation at the gates for processing that will help reduce the delay in receiving and dropping of cargo in addition to setting up an innovation / R&D fund to help drive innovation and an ecosystem for the maritime sector in India.