Ministry Of Road Transport And Highways

What is V2V, India's connected vehicle system to make roads safer from 2028

MoRTH has released draft rules proposing mandatory V2V communication systems in new vehicles from October 2028. Here's how the technology works and where it fits into India's broader V2X roadmap

Bike ambulances to get national standards: What MoRTH's draft rules propose

India plans a dedicated regulatory framework for bike ambulances. The draft rules set standards for construction, safety, registration and periodic fitness inspections

Draft rules mandate V2V communication in new vehicles from Oct 2028

The proposed rules require new vehicles to support V2V communication from October 2028, aiming to improve road safety through real-time exchange of vehicle data.

Govt issues draft notification for phased V2V communication systems

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has proposed phased implementation of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication systems to facilitate timely warnings and strengthen the use of connected technologies to boost road safety. V2V communication enables nearby vehicles to exchange real-time information, including their speed, position, direction, acceleration, etc. This information can provide warnings to drivers or vehicle systems in safety-critical situations, including sudden braking, forward-collision risk, unsafe lane changes and the approach of emergency vehicles. MoRTH has issued a draft notification proposing amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. "The 5.875 GHz to 5.925 GHz frequency band has been considered for V2V and other Intelligent Transportation System applications," the draft notification said. The Department of Telecommunications, through G.S.R. 466 (E) dated 10 June 2026, has exempted the use of this frequency band from licensing ...

Technology can help in enhancing road safety, raising awareness: Gadkari

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday said technology can help raise awareness and enhance road safety in India, emphasising that adhering to traffic rules and wearing seat belts and helmets may seem simple, but they are crucial in reducing fatalities in road accidents. Addressing an event organised by Uber, the road transport and highways minister further said India records nearly 5 lakh road accidents and 1.80 lakh fatalities annually. "Following traffic rules, wearing seat belts and helmets, sounds simple, but they play a big role in reducing fatalities in road accidents. Technology can play an important role in spreading awareness and making our roads safer," he said. The number of road accidents in India went up by 1.48 per cent to over 4.87 lakh in 2024, resulting in the deaths of 20 persons every hour, according to a recent report by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The report showed that on average, 56 road accidents take place every hour in the country. "Thr

Centre seeks state funding support for urban NH decongestion projects

States can choose from four funding models, including sharing land acquisition costs, to support ring roads, bypasses and elevated corridors around cities

Diesel-isobutanol blending mandate likely this year: Transport secretary

India is likely to bring a mandate on blending isobutanol with diesel as early as this year to improve energy security in the country and decarbonise the road and highways sector, Ministry of Roads, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Secretary V Umashankar said on Friday. Addressing the 'CII Multimodal Transportation and Logistics Summit', Umashankar further said that the highways ministry may bring a draft notification on truck-trailers interchangeability soon to build an ecosystem that needs battery-swapping and battery charging for electric heavy duty commercial vehicles. "Blending of diesel has been looked into with great seriousness. Bharat Petroleum is already undertaking strategic research for isobutanol blending with diesel. And the results are very encouraging. "It is quite likely that the blending mandate will start coming in somewhere later this year," he said. Umashankar said since diesel consumption is almost two times that of petrol, the impact on blending in terms of die

Explained: Technology behind India's barrier-free toll collection system

New system removes toll barriers using RFID, ANPR and LiDAR sensors, enabling vehicles to pass without stopping while laying groundwork for GNSS and V2X-based tolling

Govt revises BOT guidelines, allows big funds to bid for highway projects

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has allowed big funds and large investors to bid for build-operate-transfer (BOT) projects after some projects failed to attract private investments due to concerns over contract terms. Earlier, big funds were allowed to bid only for toll, operate and transfer (TOT) projects. The ministry has allowed sovereign wealth funds, infrastructure funds and pension funds, and private equity to bid for BOT projects under the public-private-partnership (PPP) model. In a modified request for proposal (RFP) document, MoRTH has relaxed norms for investments in such projects. The ministry came out with the modified framework after four highway projects worth Rs 22,000 crore failed to attract bids from private companies under the BOT model due to concerns over contract terms. National Highways are developed under different modes of execution, including BOT or toll, BOT (annuity), Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC), InvIT and Hybrid

Cost overruns in central infra projects ease slightly to ₹5.61 trn in March

Cost overruns in centrally funded infrastructure projects eased marginally in March, though revised estimates remain significantly higher than original project costs

No cash at toll plazas from April 10; UPI payments to cost 1.25 times more

Cash payments at toll plazas will be discontinued for travellers on national highways from April 10, the road transport and highways ministry has said. In a gazette notification, the ministry has said that in cases where a vehicle enters a fee plaza without a valid FASTag, users can still pay via Unified Payment Interface (UPI), but at a higher charge of 1.25 times the applicable toll fee. A senior NHAI official said that the move is aimed at reducing long queues at toll gates and make highway travel smoother for commuters. The official said that cash payments will no longer be accepted at the toll booths from April 10 and FASTag will remain the primary mode of toll collection, while UPI will serve as the fallback payment option for vehicles that arrive without a valid FASTag. "If the user of a vehicle enters a fee plaza without a FASTag or a valid functional FASTag, as the case may be, and opts to pay fee through the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), he shall pay 1.25 times of the

Policy, AI and growth themes set tone at Day 1 of BS Manthan 2026

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari headlined the first day of the summit

Govt looks to raise ₹30K crore from highway monetisation in FY27

The Centre plans to raise Rs 30,000 crore through highway monetisation and build 10,000 km of roads in FY27, with a renewed emphasis on PPP projects, asset quality, and mobility improvements

Govt plans to revive private investment in highways with ₹1 trn project

The renewed push for private capital is intended to modernise infrastructure and reduce logistics costs, as well as strengthen India's competitiveness against China

New policies in works for faster decision-making: Gadkari on Invit push

Kahi problemach nahi (there's no problem). The NHAI is economically sound, and it has an AAA rating, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said

Nhai plans to reduce its debt to below ₹2 trillion by March 2026

State-owned NHAI is planning to reduce its debt to below Rs 2 lakh crore in the current financial year ending March, a senior government official said on Sunday. NHAI's debt liability had peaked at Rs 3.5 lakh crore in 2021-22. As of December 31, 2025, the debt stands at Rs 2,35,947 crore. "In line with the government policy, NHAI has not borrowed since 2023 and since then the debt liability was reduced by around 32 per cent," the official said on condition of anonymity. Further, to reduce its overall debt, he said NHAI has prepaid liabilities of Rs 86,000 crore of which Rs 50,000 crore was NSSF loan. "No specific target for the current year was fixed but the debt liability is planned to be brought down below Rs 2,00,000 crore," the official said. Retiring this debt ahead of schedule has resulted in a steep decrease of NHAI debt. Due to proactive negotiation with banks, NHAI was able to reduce its interest burden by refixing interest rates lower by about 80 basis points during t

New FASTag norms to come into effect from Feb 1: Here's what changes

The latest move is aimed at enhancing public convenience and eliminating post-activation hassle faced by highway users

At least 574 national highway projects behind completion schedule: Gadkari

As many as 574 under construction National Highway projects worth Rs 3.60 lakh crore have exceeded their completion schedule, Parliament was informed on Wednesday. In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said that out of 574 delayed highway projects awarded in the last five years, 300 are facing delay of less than one year, 253 projects 1-3 years and 21 projects over 3 years. Gadkari also said 133 NH projects with total cost of about Rs 1 lakh crore have been awarded but appointed date could not be declared pending fulfilment of pre-requisite conditions like availability of encumbrance free land and clearances by forest and wildlife departments. He said the ministry has taken various steps to streamline land acquisition process by leveraging the mechanism of review and resolution of bottlenecks / hindrances in ongoing projects, in active collaboration with the state governments and other stakeholders. Responding to a separate question, the road transport

Road works of ₹1.5 trillion have been approved for Maharashtra: Gadkari

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Saturday said road works valued at Rs 1.50 lakh crore have been approved for Maharashtra for 2026. The works will begin in the next three months, he told reporters on the premises of the Vidhan Bhavan, where the state legislature session is underway. The Nagpur MP visited the legislature complex to attend an event marking the centenary celebration of the Vidhan Parishad. Gadkari told reporters that MSIDC (Maharashtra State Infrastructure Development Corporation) will construct a new Pune-Sambhajinagar expressway for Rs 16,318 crore, and an MoU has been processed. The new expressway will reduce the travelling time from Pune to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to two hours and from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to Nagpur in two-and-a-half hours. He said the 'bhoomipujan' (ground-breaking) of Talegaon-Chakan-Shikrapur Elevated Road, which is being constructed for Rs 4,207 crore, will be done after the local body elections are over. Gadkari said that the DPR proc

Govt plans rating system to assess NH contractor firms' performance

The Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) on Thursday said it is developing a rating system to assess the performance of contractor firms engaged in National Highways works. The ministry, in a concept note, said that for rating purposes, the contracts would be divided into three classes: projects of Rs 100 crore or more up to Rs 300 crore; projects of more than Rs 300 crore up to Rs 1,000 crore; and projects of more than Rs 1,000 crore. The note said rating exercise shall be done once in a year, in the first iteration, eligible projects up to February 15 will be taken up and preferably rated by March 31, and thereafter, for eligible projects up to November 15 and preferably rated by December 31 every year. "Accordingly, rating of contractors/concessionaires would also be done in classes," it said. According to the concept note, ratings for Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) and Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) projects shall be conducted together, whereas ratings