Toll collection from different sources may reach ₹4 trillion: Nitin Gadkari

Gadkari said toll collections could rise to Rs 3.5-4 trillion annually as India adopts AI-based, barrier-free tolling and expands road infrastructure

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday said toll collection from different sources can reach Rs 3.5–4 trillion soon, from the current levels of Rs 80,000–85,000 crore, as road projects and traffic keep increasing with the government’s focus on a leak-proof, digitised tolling system. 

“Amid economic growth, there is growth in the automobile segment as well. With this growth, toll collection will grow as well, benefiting investors. Our current annual toll collection is around Rs 80,000–85,000 crore from different sources. If projects keep increasing, we will be able to collect tolls worth Rs 3.5–4 trillion per annum soon,” Gadkari said. 

 

He stated that India will completely shift to the new multi-lane free-flow system, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) and aims to create a barrier-free, leak-proof toll system by the end of 2026. 

“By using newer technologies, we are saving around Rs 8,500 crore in the cost of toll collection. We have awarded tenders for 10 plazas, six are under construction, and have floated tenders for 105 more plazas. By December 2026, we should be able to shift completely to the new system,” he said.

 

The minister was speaking during the listing ceremony of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI)-sponsored public infrastructure investment trust (InvIT), Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust (RIIT), here on Tuesday. The InvIT’s Rs 6,000-crore initial public offering (IPO) has been oversubscribed nearly 14 times.

 

Speaking about the InvIT landscape, Gadkari said many assets can be monetised but the pace of expenditure continues to be a problem. “If we can increase that pace, every year we can spend Rs 8–8.5 trillion, including budgetary allocation of Rs 3.2 trillion and Rs 5 trillion from the market by monetising our assets. The expenditure is necessary and important for India’s economic growth,” he said.

 

According to the Bharat InvITs Association, total assets under management of listed InvITs (public and private) stood at Rs 7 trillion as of September 2025 and are expected to reach Rs 21 trillion by 2030. AUM has grown over 1,000 per cent in the last five years, with a 16.5 per cent increase in the past year alone. InvITs have distributed over Rs 83,770 crore since inception, including Rs 10,000 crore in the first two quarters of FY26 and Rs 5,565 crore in the third quarter.

 

Gadkari stated that by the end of 2026, assets worth Rs 3.5 trillion will be under InvITs. NHAI has monetised assets worth around Rs 1.5 trillion in the last four years. It has also committed to being the sponsor investor of RIIT by having not less than a 10 per cent stake.

 

RIIT’s current portfolio consists of five road assets with a total length of 260.19 kilometres across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Jharkhand. The portfolio is valued at Rs 9,500 crore.

 

Raajmarg has a right of first offer (ROFO) agreement with its sponsor, NHAI, under which the authority will transfer 1,500 kilometres of road assets to the InvIT over the next 3–5 years.

 

The InvIT will utilise the proceeds from the issue for the infusion of debt and equity into the project special purpose vehicles (SPVs), which shall be utilised for the payment of concession value of the InvIT assets to NHAI, and for general purposes.

 

According to the valuation report of the InvIT’s five road assets, their combined revenue is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.1 per cent from Rs 925.8 crore in the financial year 2027 to Rs 2,738.7 crore in FY41. The earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) are estimated to grow from Rs 876.6 crore in FY27 to Rs 2,442.1 crore.

 

Shares of the InvIT were listed at Rs 107 per equity share and closed at Rs 106.88 per equity share on Tuesday, valuing the InvIT at Rs 6,420 crore. The price band for the InvIT’s units was fixed from Rs 99 to Rs 100 per unit at the time of issuance.

 

Additionally, NHAI has also sponsored a private InvIT — National Highways Infra Trust (NHIT). Monetisation of operational road assets through two key modes — InvIT and toll-operate-transfer (TOT) — has been the authority’s agenda over the past few years. It has been able to monetise assets worth Rs 77,900 crore between FY22 and FY25.

 

Earlier, in a conversation with Business Standard, Gadkari had stated that new policies are being framed to enable faster and more transparent decision-making, amid the government’s InvIT push.