Govt launches Rs.25,000 cr cross-country highway

In order to facilitate trade and transport facilities in the bordering countries like Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar, India has decided to link its major highway corridors to international trade points at a cost of Rs.25,000 crore, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said that about 2,000 km of highways will be constructed to link major highways corridors to international trade points. The project is a part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana and that the Cabinet had already approved a mega plan to build 83,677 km of highways by March 2022 at a cost of about Rs.7 lakh crore, which includes the ambitious Bharatmala project at a cost of about Rs.5.35 lakh crore. About the funding for the project, Gadkari said that the entire Rs.5.35 lakh crore for Bharatmala has been tied up as Rs.2.37 lakh crore would flow from the Central road fund, Rs.2.05 lakh crore as market borrowing, Rs.34,000 crore from monetization of highway projects and Rs.60,000 crore through budgetary allocation.