Nitin Gadkari announces ₹10 trillion plan to widen 25,000 km of highways

The government is planning to upgrade 25,000 km of highways to four lanes at ₹10 trillion, expand 16,000 km to six lanes for ₹6 trillion; it aims to cut road accidents by 50 per cent by 2030

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari announced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday that the government will upgrade 25,000 km of two-lane highways into four lanes at an estimated cost of ₹10 trillion.

 

He said this initiative would play a crucial role in reducing road accidents across the country.

 

Additionally, the Minister mentioned that 16,000 km of National Highways will be expanded to six lanes, with a budget of ₹6 trillion. “We are planning to convert 25,000 km of two-lane highways into four-lane highways at a cost of ₹10 trillion. The DPRs (detailed project reports) of the projects are getting ready, and we are hopeful to complete the work in two years,” he said during the Question Hour.  

 

 

India’s road accident crisis

Gadkari said, “India records 480,000 road accidents annually,” resulting in an average of 188,000 deaths, with the majority of victims aged 18 to 45 years. The economic impact of these accidents is also severe, with the country losing 3 per cent of its GDP every year due to road mishaps. The government aims to reduce road accidents by 50 per cent by 2030.  

 

Highway development in key regions

He said that ongoing road construction projects worth ₹2 trillion are in progress in Jammu & Kashmir, where 105 tunnels are being built to improve connectivity. Among these projects, the Zojila tunnel is a major highlight. Designed to be the longest tunnel in Asia located in a sub-zero temperature zone, it was initially estimated to cost over ₹12,000 crore but will now be completed at approximately ₹5,500 crore.  

 

Jammu-Srinagar highway and Delhi-Katra Expressway

The minister also shared updates on the Jammu-Srinagar Highway, where 36 tunnels are planned, with construction already completed in 22 of them. Once fully developed, the highway will cut travel time between Jammu and Srinagar to just three to three and half hours from the current seven hours.  

 

Further, work is progressing on the Delhi-Katra Expressway, which will reduce travel time between the two destinations from 12 hours to nearly half.  

 

Indian highways to surpass US standards in 2 yrs

On Tuesday, Gadkari said that India’s highway network will surpass that of the United States within the next two years.

 

“I don't think there is any problem in the road sector. The changes this year and next year will be so significant that earlier I used to say our highway road network would match that of the US, but now I say that within two years, our highway network will be even better than the US,” he said.

 

[With agency inputs]