NHAI hastens ₹6,000-cr coastal highway project

NHAI has decided to start widening work on the national highway 45 A (new number 332 A) connecting Chennai and Nagapattinam on the south-eastern coastal corridor. The ₹6,000-crore project will be commissioned in two years and has been taken up under the Centre's Bharatmala Prayojana (phase-I) under HAM. The four-laning of the 180-km stretch connecting Villupuram and Nagapattinam would traverse through Puducherry, Cuddalore, Chidambaram, Sirkazhi and Karaikal. The project would be implemented in four phases and about 70% of land has already been acquired for the first three phases. Tenders have also been awarded and contractors will start construction work shortly, informed an NHAI project official.