Cabinet approves ₹8,970-crore Guwahati-Tezpur highway project in Assam

The government said the project would double the average travel speeds and cut travel time by half, while improving road safety, fuel efficiency, and reducing vehicle operating costs.

The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved the development of Guwahati-Tezpur corridor on National Highway-15 in Assam with a total outlay of ₹8,970.20 crore.  The 135.87-km, four-lane access-controlled corridor project will be implemented on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT)-Toll basis under the National Highways (Original) programme.  The project includes the construction of a 4.9-km Emergency Landing Facility (ELF) on the Tezpur bypass in coordination with the Indian Air Force, along with five major bypasses spanning 58.7 km to ease congestion in Baihata Chariali, Sipajhar, Kharupetia, Dekiajuli and Tezpur.  The corridor will also comprise 15 major bridges, 30 minor bridges, 19 flyovers, 46 underpasses, an elephant underpass on the Tezpur bypass and around 210 km of service roads to facilitate local traffic movement on the access-controlled highway.  The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs said the project would double the average travel speeds and cut travel time by half, while improving road safety, fuel efficiency, and reducing vehicle operating costs.  Additionally, it will also strengthen connectivity between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by linking key industrial, logistics, tourism and social infrastructure. According to the government, it will improve access to eight PM Gati Shakti economic nodes, including industrial parks; two aspirational districts of Darrang and Udalguri; three tourist destinations—Maa Kamakhya Temple, Kaziranga National Park and Orang National Park—and seven logistics hubs, including major railway stations, airports and inland waterway terminals.