Ministry Of Road Transport And Highways

Govt proposes returning unused National Highway land to owners after 5 yrs

The govt has proposed amendments to the National Highways Act, allowing land acquired for highway projects to be returned to original owners if unused for five years

Over-speeding to potholes: The many reasons Indian roads are unsafe

Spending on safety is inadequate as accidents and fatalities continue in the country

PNC Infratech shares surge 10% after regulatory relief from MoRTH

Disqualification period imposed on company, two SPVs reduced from one year to four months

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

Budget 2025: Govt allocates Rs 2.87 trn for highways ministry for FY26

The government on Saturday allocated Rs 2,873,33.16 crore for the road transport and highways ministry for 2025-26, marginally 2.41 per cent up from last year's outlay of 2,805,18.80 crore. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday also increased the allocation to state-owned National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to Rs 1,878,03 crore from last year's Rs 1,693,71 crore. The NHAI's total debt at the beginning of the current fiscal year was pegged at Rs 3.35 lakh crore, which stood about Rs 2.76 lakh crore at the end of third quarter of FY25. The Budget for 2025-26 makes no provision for borrowings by the NHAI for the next financial year, to reduce the highway developer's debt.

Execution of road projects dips 6% in first 8 months of FY25: ICRA report

The ratings agency has attributed the slowdown to the general elections in the first quarter of FY25 (Q1 FY25) and prolonged monsoon in certain geographies

Infra development key to achieving Viksit Bharat goal: Nitin Gadkari

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Monday said infrastructure development is imperative to achieve the goal of Viksit Bahrat, as the economy depends on good transport and communication facilities. "The Prime Minister has given us a mission of developed and prosperous India. If we have to achieve a Viksit Bharat, we will have to improve the country's infrastructure. "Until water, power, transport, and communication do not develop, industry, business, and tourism will not get a boost," Gadkari said, addressing a rally after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Sonamarg tunnel here. The Union Minister said Modi has taken a pledge to develop J-K along with the country. "He has given us the task of developing this infrastructure. Good roads make a country developed and prosperous. We are working on a mission to make J-K developed and prosperous so that industries are established here, tourism increases, employment opportunities are created for the youth and poverty is eradicated. W

Gadkari announce a modified scheme for treatment of road accident victims

For victims of hit-and-run accidents, families will receive an ex-gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh, along with assistance in navigating legal and medical procedures

NHAI prepays Rs 56,000 cr to lenders in FY25 to save Rs 1,200 cr interest

National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has pre-paid loans of worth Rs 56,000 crore during the current fiscal, helping the state-owned agency to save interest cost of around Rs 1,200 crore, a senior government official said on Sunday. The official told PTI that NHAI's total debt at the beginning of the current fiscal year was pegged at Rs 3.35 lakh crore, which stood at about Rs 2.76 lakh crore at the end of third quarter of 2024-25 fiscal year. He further said that around Rs 15,700 crore has been pre-paid from the InvIT monetisation proceeds, while Rs 40,000 crore prepayment of loan has been made to National Small Saving Fund (Rs 30,000 crore) and State Bank of India (Rs 10,000 crore), which charge high interest rates. "NHAI is successfully reducing its debt liability," the official added. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her last year's budget had retained the allocation to NHAI at Rs 1.68 lakh crore for 2024-25.

Looking to automate highway construction on pilot basis, says Morth

AIMC provides a repository of digitised construction data, high adherence to design specifications, better transparency and others

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

Gadkari announces nine road projects worth Rs 30,000 crore for Rajasthan

Detailing the nine projects, the minister said the 110-km-long Northern Jaipur Ring Road, entailing an investment of Rs 6,500 crore, has been approved

Centre plans AI-driven traffic safety, invites foreign investment in infra

Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari announced plans to work with private sector experts on traffic solutions to prevent road accidents, claiming India's road infrastructure will soon surpass the US

Centre allocates 20 cr for Mandi-Kullu road development: Vikramaditya Singh

Himachal Pradesh minister Vikramaditya Singh on Thursday said leaders should rise above party politics and work for the development of the state and cited a AB Vajpayee anecdote to make his case. Singh, who celebrated his birthday with workers at the Congress office in Shimla, told reporters, "I have been informed that the state is getting about Rs 20 crore more from the Centre for roads." The Public Works Minister said the state government has tried to prioritise welfare of the state at the top and sought assistance from the Union government for it. Singh shared an anecdote from the time when his father and Congress leader Virbhadra Singh was the chief minister in Himachal in 2003 and BJP leader A B Vajpayee was the prime minister. "Vajpayee once said that he does not share the ideology of Virbhadra Singh ji but said 'he is my personal friend' and gave Rs 500 crore to Himachal," the PWD minister said. "What I mean to say is that we should rise above petty politics and work for th

Delhi's Dwarka Expressway to get 'free flow' toll system for smooth rides

The National Highways Authority of India is working to implement a 'free flow tolling' system on the Dwarka Expressway in New Delhi - a move that will eliminate physical toll plazas

India's logistics cost will come down to single-digits in 5 yrs: Gadkari

India's logistics cost will come down to single-digit within the next five years, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday. Addressing the 'Deloitte Government Summit' here, Gadkari said the ministry is constructing several highways and expressways which will help reduce India's logistics cost. "I am confident that within five years our logistics cost will be in single-digit," he said. However, according to quick estimates of economic think tank National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), the logistics cost in India ranged from 7.8 per cent to 8.9 per cent of GDP in 2021-22. The road transport and highways minister further said he aimed to make the Indian automobile industry number one in the world. Last year, India had overtaken Japan to become the third-largest automobile market in the world, only behind the US and China, he said. According to him, the size of India's automobile industry rose from Rs 7.5 lakh crore in 2014 to Rs 22 la

Pre-BS era vehicles, mainly CVs should be scrapped: Road transport secy

Ministry of Road Transport & Highways Secretary Anurag Jain on Thursday pitched for scrapping of pre-BS era vehicles, especially commercial heavy vehicles, citing pollution and safety issues. Bharat Stage (BS) norms were introduced in the country in 2000. "If look at pre-BS vehicles, these do so much of pollution. The vehicles which are from before 2000 do pollution 15 times (more). Do you think such vehicles should run when there is so much of problems happening in our country due to pollution," Jain said. In case of such vehicles, he said, the fuel and maintenance costs also go up adding that there has been so much change in the safety features of vehicles in the last 15 years. "There is huge sense to actually scrap your own old vehicle. We are working from a lot of days to incentivise scrapping...If you scrap an old vehicle, you will bring safety, you will save on your fuel," he stressed. "So there is a need to think about such vehicles. This I am talking about commercial heavy

New toll rules: Is FASTag's end near with GNSS rollout? Who's using it?

Vehicles equipped with On-Board Units (OBUs) featuring GNSS will automatically have tolls deducted based on the distance travelled, with the initial 20 km being free of charge

Goodbye to toll plazas and waiting? Centre notifies GPS-based toll system

Vehicles equipped with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) On-Board Units (OBUs) will be able to automatically pay tolls based on the distance they travel

I am not against incentives on EVs, but its not my call: Nitin Gadkari

Within two years, the cost of an EV will be the same as petrol and diesel vehicles. They don't need subsidies as there already is an advantage with electric as a fuel, he says