Cabinet nod to 4-lane Paramakudi-Ramanathapuram road project in Tamil Nadu

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the construction of four-lane Paramakudi-Ramanathapuram Section of NH-87 in Tamil Nadu at a cost of Rs 1,853 crore.

The project will be developed on Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM) at a capital cost of Rs 1,853 crore, I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said while briefing on the decisions taken at the Cabinet meeting.

Currently, connectivity between Madurai, Paramakudi, Ramanathapuram, Mandapam, Rameshwaram, and Dhanushkodi is dependent on the existing 2-lane National Highway 87 (NH-87) and associated State Highways, which experience significant congestion due to high traffic volumes, especially in densely populated stretches and key towns along the corridor.

To address these challenges, the project will upgrade approximately 46.7 km of NH-87 from Paramakudi to Ramanathapuram to a 4-lane configuration, an official release said.

This will decongest the existing corridor, improve safety, and cater to the mobility needs of rapidly growing towns such as Paramakudi, Sathirakudi, Achundanvayal and Ramanathapuram.

Upon completion, the Paramakudi-Ramanathapuram section will play a pivotal role in regional economic growth, strengthening connectivity between major religious and economic centres, boosting tourism to Rameshwaram and Dhanushkodi, and opening new avenues for trade and industrial development.

The project will also generate approximately 8.4 lakh person-days of direct and 10.45 lakh person-days of indirect employment, and will open new avenues of growth, development and prosperity in surrounding regions, the release said.