As of January, the transport ministry spent Rs 228 crore to increase highway construction speed to 25 kilometers per day

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) data shows that the country’s highway construction speed increased to 25 kilometers per day in the current financial year ended January from an average of 22 kilometers per day in the same period last year. The ministry has spent Rs 228 crore, which is about 87% of the total expenditure.

The ministry has constructed 7,658 kilometers of national highways this year as of January 31, up from 6,803 kilometers in the previous fiscal. Prior to this, the ministry constructed 6,684 kilometers of highways in 2021-22.

The pace of road construction is the best in the past three years, with the ministry building an average of about 22 kilometers of roads per day as of January. The construction is consistent with the ministry’s construction during the same period in 2018-19 and 2019-20. During 2020-21, the ministry constructed an average of about 30 kilometers of highways every day – a very high number.

Speaking to News18, a transport ministry official said they hope to build around 13,000 kilometers of national highways this fiscal year – a target set by the transport ministry. Last fiscal year, the ministry constructed 10,331 kilometers of national highways. Before that, the figures were: 10,237km in 2019-20, 13,327km in 2020-21, 10,457km in 2021-22 and 10,331km in 2022-23.

With the current Lok Sabha term ending in May and the country holding elections in March-April, the road construction progress in the coming month is likely to remain on track. It is worth noting that during the voting phase, when the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is in place, the award of new projects will cease. However, work on the awarded projects will continue.

The number of new projects awarded has dropped significantly compared to last year – from an average of 27 kilometers in the year to January in 2022-23 to an average of 11 kilometers in the first 10 months of the current financial year 2023-24.

As of January, the transport ministry had awarded only 3,481 km of highway projects, down from 8,400 km awarded in the previous fiscal year. However, this is better than the figures in 2018-19, the last time the Lok Sabha elections were held.

The ministry’s spending is in line with the government’s plans. Since the MCC is most likely to be in place around mid-March, the ministry aims to invest the most money before then. So far, out of the Rs 264 crore allocated to MoRTH, the ministry has utilized Rs 228 crore – about 87 per cent.