 "How 'national highway' status for roads is hurting govt's finances")
Road stretches that are upgraded to the category of national highways (NHs) are costing the government dearly.
This is due to the added land acquisition cost and funds needed for upgradation; also, the nomenclature leads to a reduction in toll revenue for existing NHs.
National Highways in-principle, as these stretches are termed, were not originally envisaged as such but receive the status later, either after the expansion or when state roads are converted to NHs.
Experts say after such a development, traffic on existing highways gets diverted, leading to loss in toll revenue. This issue was highlighted by former power secretary Subhash Chandra
