Gadkari unveils Rs 10 lakh crore highway plan

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, has announced that road infrastructure projects worth Rs 10 lakh crore will be undertaken across the country over the next two years, with a special focus on the northeastern states and border regions.

In an interview with a news agency, Gadkari said that the government is committed to transforming road connectivity in the Northeast, stating that "in the next two years, roads in the northeastern region will be on par with those in the United States."

The minister revealed that 784 highway projects will be initiated in the eastern states, spanning 21,355 kilometers, at an estimated cost of Rs 3.73 lakh crore. These initiatives will be executed under the aegis of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), and the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL).

Gadkari added that several major projects worth thousands of crores are already underway in states such as Assam, Bihar, and others, marking a significant step toward bridging regional disparities in infrastructure development.