MoRTH sets to surpass 11,000-km road-building targets

With more than 8,000 km of national highways built from 1st April 2020 to 15th January 2021 clocking an increase of 8% over the corresponding period in the last financial year, the road transport and highways ministry informed that it is poised to surpass the financial year target of 11,000 km by 31 March, despite covid-19 related challenges. During the same period in the last fiscal, 7,573 km roads were constructed, with a pace of 26.11 km per day. The rate of road construction generally picks up in the second half of the year, especially after the monsoon season. An increase in road construction is indicated by the government's focus on infrastructure creation, which in turn boosts economic growth. The pace at which contracts are being awarded for building national highways has more than doubled this financial year. The ministry awarded highway projects for 7,597 km length during this period, compared with 3,474 km during the same period in the last financial year. In total, projects for 8,948 km of roads were awarded in 2019-20 while 10,237 km of roads were constructed during this year. The achievement is significant as the first two months of the current fiscal were lost due to the nationwide lockdown in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic.