Gadkari virtually launches Rs 6,600 crore highway projects in Odisha, emphasising significant progress and future infrastructure plans.
Nitin Gadkari, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister, virtually inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for 28 national highway (NH) projects worth Rs 6,600 crore in Odisha. Despite the cancellation of his visit, Gadkari remotely launched these projects. Notable among them are a 79km four-lane road between Baharagora and Singhara on NH-49, valued at Rs 1,203 crore, and a 78km six-lane road from Chandikhol to Bhadrak on NH-16, costing Rs 2,035 crore. Additionally, he initiated the groundwork for 26 other road infrastructure projects in the state. Gadkari highlighted the significant progress in NH development in Odisha since 2014, with the total length increasing from 4,639 km to 5,753 km. The ministry allocated nearly Rs 1.50 lakh crore for highway development in Odisha. Gadkari also disclosed plans for a 111km greenfield ring road around Bhubaneswar city, divided into two packages and expected to benefit residents of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and Khurda. Furthermore, he announced a 35km four-lane greenfield ring road in Sambalpur at a cost of Rs 1,333 crore, with work commencing in October 2024. Gadkari emphasised the government’s focus on infrastructure development, aiming for Odisha’s NH network to resemble roads in the USA by the year’s end under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.
(Source: Business Standard)
