Page 2 - Highways

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

Delhi HC asks Centre to outline mechanism for disabled-friendly taxi apps

The Delhi High Court has directed the central government to apprise it about the regulatory mechanism for ensuring that taxi aggregators' applications are disabled-friendly prior to their launch. The court granted a last opportunity to the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to file an affidavit on this aspect within four weeks. . failing which, the concerned Joint Secretary of the respondent no.2 (ministry) shall personally remain present in court, on the next date of hearing (August 13), Justice Sachin Datta said and listed the matter for further proceedings on March 19. Meanwhile, bike-taxi aggregator Rapido also assured the court that adequate steps will be taken to ensure that its application continues to be disabled-friendly. The submission came after the court was informed that as per the accessibility audit report, several accessibility issues were identified in the Rapido Android App'. The counsel for Roppen Transportation Services Pvt Ltd -- which owns Rapido -

Bids invited for DPRs to set up ropeway to Amarnath cave shrine in J&K

The Jammu and Kashmir government on Saturday said bids have been invited for preparing detailed project reports (DPRs) for development of three ropeways, including 11.60 kms Baltal to 3,880 meter high holy cave shrine of Amarnath, to facilitate the easy movement of pilgrims during the annual pilgrimage. In addition, bids for preparation of DPRs are also being invited by the National Highways Logistics Management Ltd (NHLML) for three more ropeway projects -- two in Budgam and one in Ramban district, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said in a written reply in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. Abdullah, who is also minister in-charge tourism, gave the information in response to unstarred question by National Conference legislator Sajjad Shaheen, who referred to the March 15, 2022 decision of the lieutenant governor led administrative council and subsequent government order dated September 6, 2023 about the development of ropeway projects through the NHLML under Parvatmala initiative. a list

Cabinet approves 6-lane highway project connecting JNPT at Rs 4,500 crore

According to an official statement, the project will be developed on build, operate and transfer (BOT) mode at a total cost of Rs 4,500.62 crore

Panel on satellite toll system urges deliberation over security, privacy

Union Road Transport and Highways minister Nitin Gadkari in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha said it is proposed to proceed with corridor/stretch-based projects

New FASTag transaction norms not to impact highway users' experience: NHAI

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has clarified that users' experience on highway toll plazas will not be impacted with the implementation of new norms on FASTag transactions. The clarification came after the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), an umbrella organisation for operating retail payments and settlement systems, introduced a new regulation with regard to delayed transactions due to inactive FASTags at toll plazas. The rules have come into effect on February 17. The NPCI circular aims to ensure that the FASTag transactions are settled within the reasonable time of vehicle passing a toll plaza so that customers are not harassed by late transactions, NHAI said in a statement. "The circular has been issued by NPCI to facilitate resolution of disputes between acquirer bank and issuer bank on FASTag status while vehicle crosses toll plazas," it said. The NHAI further said that all National Highway toll plazas operate on ICD 2.5 protocol which gives ...

Severe delays in Rs 1 trillion national highway projects: CareEdge Ratings

Delayed HAM projects rose from 33% of total projects to 55%, says agency

No more toll hassles: Annual, lifetime highway passes for commuters soon

The government is planning to bring annual and lifetime toll passes for 15 years for Rs 3000 and Rs 30,000, respectively, to reduce the toll burden on regular commuters

Highways Infra Trust eyes Rs 25K crore AUM this FY: Gaurav Chandna

The company's growth is fueled by the infusion of Rs 5,500 crore from its key investors- KKR Fund and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP)

NHAI to spend over Rs 15,000 crore on Uttar Pradesh highways upgrade

Several districts, including Kanpur, Bareilly, Barabanki, Bahraich, Agra, Aligarh, and Gorakhpur are poised to benefit from these projects

NHAI explores ways to enhance the enforcement of global standards

This came after projects inaugurated by Modi saw quality defects, such as stretches of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, prompting criticism on social media

80 lakh tonnes of waste reused, green hydrogen key to energy goals: Gadkari

Nitin Gadkari mentioned that the transport sector accounts for about 40 per cent of India's air pollution and outlined various initiatives to address the issue

Highways: Uttar Pradesh's path to become the first $1 trillion state

Since Adityanath took office in March 2017, various expressway projects - either commissioned or still under construction - have a total outlay of Rs 80,000 crore

'Govt collected Rs 1.44 trn toll at highway plazas under PPP since 2000'

The government has collected Rs 1.44 lakh crore as toll tax at fee plazas presently operational under Public Private Partnerships (PPP) model on National Highways since December 2000, Parliament was informed on Thursday. In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari said all user fee plazas on National Highways are established as per the provision of National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008 and the respective Concession Agreement. "Amount of 1.44 lakh crore rupees have been collected as user fee at fee plazas presently operational under Public Private Partnerships (PPP) model on National Highways since December, 2000," he said. Replying to a separate question, Gadkari said the government has initiated the implementation of barrier-free tolling using available technology based electronic toll collection (ETC) system as an added facility along with FASTag. The minister said presently, Global ...

PNC Infratech gets NHAI nod to transfer 100% stake in road assets to HIT

Earlier, during its annual general meeting on September 28, 2024, the company had approved the sale of 12 road assets

UP allocates Rs 892.7 cr to resume delayed Chilla elevated road project

Construction of the 5.9-kilometre, six-lane elevated road was initially conceived in 2012 to alleviate traffic congestion between Noida and Delhi. However, the project has faced many setbacks

We will not spare you: Gadkari fumes at poor upkeep of EPE, warns operators

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday came down heavily on agencies and contractors over ill-maintained roads, saying good operators would be awarded but bad ones would be "driven out of the system". "We will not spare you. We'll ensure that bank guarantees of those doing bad work are forfeited and after this, we will blacklist you, not allow you to apply for new tenders," the minister said. His warning came after he noticed the bad maintenance of the Eastern Peripheral Expressway that he took to reach Ghaziabad to inaugurate a tree plantation drive 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' under the 'Swachhata Hi Seva 2024 - Swabhav Swachhata - Sanskar Swachhata' campaign. During his address, the minister highlighted the strides in development made under the government, the ministry and the National Highway Authority of India, citing data, expenditures and the future vision for the sector. He also emphasised the need for pro-environment policies and initiatives like ...

Govt constitutes experts panel for technical review of tunnel projects

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has constituted a panel of experts for the technical review of tunnel projects on National Highways. According to a communication by the ministry, the panel comprises experts from ONGC, RVNL and THIDCL for tendering expert advice during the appraisal of long tunnel (length of more than 1.5 km) projects. Proposals for long tunnel projects (length of more than 1.5 km) on NHs must be submitted to the Director General (Road Development) for technical review and obtaining expert advice from an advisory panel well before submitting the proposal for appraisal of Public Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC) and Standing Finance Committee (SFC), it stated. In the communication to states, NHAI and National Highway Infrastructure Development Corporation, among others, the ministry stated that the proposal must include details of geological studies, alignment report, design of tunnels, safety measures during operations along with cost ...

Single bid for national highway projects will be acceptable: Morth

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) on Wednesday said that even a single bid for national highways work will be considered if it is reasonable. As per the circular, the bidding process will not be cancelled if there is only one bidder for a highway project. "Even when only one bid is submitted, the process should be considered valid, provided the procurement was satisfactory advertised and sufficient time was given for submission of bids, the qualification criteria were not restrictive and prices are reasonable in comparison to market value, " it said. Regarding reasonableness of the prices, the circular said the evaluation committee may examine the rates taking into consideration the comparison with the similar contracts awarded elsewhere. The purchase price of similar contracts may be updated taking into consideration inflation during the interim period, geographical conditions etc, it added. The circular said the purchase price of similar contracts may also be ...

RBI alters rules to allow e-mandate for auto-replenishment of FASTag, NCMC

The Reserve Bank on Thursday modified its e-mandate framework and allowed auto-replenishment of FASTag and National Common Mobility Card (NCMC). The current e-mandate framework requires a pre-debit notification at least a 24-hours before the actual debit from the customer's account. In June, the RBI announced that auto-replenishment of balances in FASTag and NCMC, which are recurring in nature but without any fixed periodicity, would be facilitated under the e-mandate framework. "It has been decided to include auto-replenishment of FASTag and NCMC, as and when the balance falls below a threshold set by the customer, under the e-mandate framework," the RBI said in a circular. Payments for auto-replenishment, since they are recurring in nature but without any fixed periodicity, will be exempt from the requirement of pre-debit notification, it added.