The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is going to undertake highway development projects worth Rs16,219 crore in Gujarat, which are scheduled to be completed by 2015, its general manager VK Sharma said on Thursday.

The authority has already awarded work for east-west corridor in the state, which is having total length of 570.6km and an estimated cost of Rs2,291.68 crore. Similarly, work for the stretch from 108.7 km to 263 km on NH-8 (Vadodara to Surat), having a total length of 143 km has been awarded with an estimated cost of Rs975 crore. The stretch from 263 km to 381 km on NH8 (Surat-Dahisar) has also been awarded on revenue sharing basis of with an estimated cost of Rs1,694 crore.

"All the projects of NHAI would be implemented in seven phases. The projects will established connectivity between major cities and ports, strengthening and widening of existing highways and construction of flyovers, ring-roads and other civil works," Sharma said.

"In Gujarat we have on-going projects worth Rs4,100 crore, while projects worth Rs16,219 crore are in the pipeline which are expected to be completed by 2015," he said.

The projects in pipeline include developing 133 km stretch connecting Hazira port near Surat to Maharashtra-Gujarat border, 210 km of highway between Ahmedabad and Madhya Pradesh border, 73 km Kandla-Mundra section in Kutch and 127 km long Jetpur-Somnath section in Saurashtra. Apart from that, widening 95 km of Ahmedabad-Vadodara express highway, 140 km of Udaipur-Ahmedabad highway and 56 km of Gandhidham-Samakhiali section, into six lanes will also be undertaken. NHAI also plans to develop ring road and bypass in the city of Surat and Ahmedabad, for which it has written to the Gujarat government and reply is awaited.

Anil Dixit, Ahmedabad project director of NHAI, said, "The expressway-I connecting Ahmedabad to Vadodara will be extended upto Mumbai. The Vadodara-Mumbai expressway will be having a total length of around 400 km, out of which around 271 km will be passing through Gujarat". He also said that the expressway would be ready by 2015 and the estimated cost of it is Rs15 core per km.

Disabled to man Prantej toll booth

The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is going to launch corporate social responsibility (CSR) by employing around 25 handicapped persons at toll booth at Prantij. Anil Dixit, Ahmedabad project director of the authority, said, "25 handicapped persons including five females have been appointed for the job of collecting toll at Prantij." The only condition is that the disabled person should be graduate and belongs to local area. Naina Bano, a physically handicapped person employed at the booth said that she got a monthly salary of around Rs6,500.

First state to have six-lane national highway

Gujarat will be the first state in the country to have six lanes on major stretch of national highways. Stretch of national highway No8 between Vadodara and Surat is being converted into six lanes.

NHAI officials claimed that better road connectivity between major cities would boots industrial development and tourism in the state. Connectivity with 10 ports in the state will help exporters, while developing road between industrial cities like Surat, Ahmedabad, Bharuch, Ankleshwar and Vapi will boost the industries in the state, they said

Roshan Kumar/ DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication