The Bharatmala Pariyojana launched by the government of India in the year 2017 was a transformation of highway infrastructure for India by visualizing up gradation and development of highways, for a country with a thrust placed towards improving connectivity and hence the savings made on logistics costs. The scheme so far by October 31, 2024 has surpassed so many milestones set, and by this date more than 18,700 kilometers of highways were constructed. This is under the broad plan of building the strong road networks in support of the rapidly increasing transportation requirements of the country.
Introducing Bharatmala Pariyojana:
The Bharatmala Pariyojana has been sanctioned for up-gradation of the connectivity of the country’s road network. It is the scheme concentrating more on under-served areas. This project deals with a total length of roads of 34,800 kilometers. It targets not only national highways but also improves the connectivity of rural and coastal areas for smoother transportation across the country.
So far, according to the latest reports, under the scheme, 26,425 kilometers of highway projects have been awarded, while as many as 18,714 kilometers have been completed. This is a tremendous leap in India’s infrastructural enhancements.
Investment in Road Infrastructure
This is one of the high features of Bharatmala Pariyojana as a huge amount of investment is being spent in this programme. In this scheme, National Highways Authority of India is investing Rs 4.72 lakh crore in the development and expansion on national highways. This investment will create road networks which reduce travel times, make journeys safer as well as decrease transport costs.
It will have profound effects on the country’s economy since this development is going to help in easy movement of goods and services across the regions, especially in sectors related to logistics and transport.
Coastal Connectivity and Port Development
The most significant improvement has been in connectivity to the major and minor ports of the coastal states under the Bharatmala scheme. Port and Coastal Connectivity Roads have received as many as 18 projects for the category of 424 km, out of which 189 km has already been constructed. So far, the thrust of the projects has been to upgrade the transport links in the major coastal states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal.
This will bring faster movement of goods along with an effective movement which will boost trade and commerce and make the Indian economy more competitive in the international market.
Development of the Northeastern Region
Significant progress has also been registered in the northeastern region of India, where the road infrastructure has been under-served for quite a long time. The region is presently hosting as many as 190 projects of 3,856 kilometers which are under construction. The total investment for the projects is at Rs 81,540 crore and completion is supposed to be September 2028.
Development of roads in northeast will not only augment regional connectivity but also serve a great purpose in the economic development of the region due to its strategic significance. More than that, such projects would further improve integration with other parts of India and open up wider scope of trade and commerce.
Strategies to Hasten Completion of the Project:
The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has come forward with several steps it undertook and enforced for smoothing up the whole process of achieving delay-free, completing tasks in timely manner of project completion. Some of these have been as follows:
Efficient Land Acquisition: Every effort has been made to streamline the entire process of land acquisition, which remains a point of major delay in any infrastructure project.
Dispute Resolution Mechanism: The cleared dispute resolution system reformed so that issues get sorted out quickly.
Coordination with the State Governments and the ministries will help in solving issues that may arise and push ahead faster project implementation.
Pre-approval for Clearances: All kind of clearances, to begin with, are granted at the start of the any project to avoid delay to its initiation when physical work.
These measures have so far positively contributed to the facilitation of smooth execution and on-time completion of the Bharatmala projects.
The Way Ahead
Taking into account infrastructure expenditure coupled with the will to finish every work schedule in the due time, the Bharatmala Pariyojana promises to transform highway connectivity across India fully. Their success in the completion will definitely enhance India’s system transportation in which it enhances movements of people and good by way of moving up very fast.
Besides this, the progress that is taking place in the northeastern region and the coastal states, the Bharatmala scheme would be offering an integrated and efficient road network, which would be of great benefit to the Indian economy and its citizens for generations to come.
Conclusion
Bharatmala Pariyojana is going to change the face of highway infrastructure in India, which is efficient and cost-effective. The number of roads constructed in just three years is 18,700 kilometers with huge investment being allocated. The scheme, on the way to delivering long-term benefits for the country, also reflects the direction of policy that the government would be having towards improvement of connectivity, and therefore the road network of India will increasingly find a role to play in its support for growth and development of the economy.
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