The government’s flagship programme, Bharatmala Pariyojana, initiated in 2017, has adopted a corridor-based approach for the growth of the country’s road sector. It aims at optimising the freight efficiency and passenger movement across the country through various components of the programme, including economic corridors, inter-corridor and feeder routes, national corridors and efficiency improvements, border and international connectivity roads, coastal and port connectivity roads and greenfield expressways. It also includes the residual National Highway Development Programme (NHDP) projects.
The programme is currently in its first phase, under which around 14,300 km of roads have been constructed. The programme expects to increase the average speed on national highways, improve connectivity, reduce pollution in cities and decrease the number of accidents, among other targets. Transportation efficiency is also expected to be improved, thus aiding the logistics industry that relies on it.
Current progress
Under Phase I of the Bharatmala Pariyojana, around 34,800 km of national highways have been approved, including 10,000 km of the residual NHDP, at an initial investment outlay of Rs 5.35 trillion. However, cost and time overruns have pushed the total outlay to about Rs 10.63 trillion. As of July 2023, around 26,900 km of length has been awarded and 14,300 km of length has been constructed. The remaining length targeted to be awarded by 2024-25 is 7,900 km and the remaining length of 20,500 km is targeted to be constructed by 2027-28. There are also plans for the development of 27 high-speed expressways and access-controlled corridors of about 10,000 km at a cost of Rs 4.5 trillion. The 67 km-long Aligarh-Kanpur four-laning road project (package I) in Uttar Pradesh and the 4.9 km Khed bypass under the Khed-Sinnar four-laning highway project (NH-50) including a 240-m bridge in Maharashtra are some of the recently completed key projects under the programme.
The Bharatmala Phase I also involves the development of 35 multimodal logistics parks (MMLPs) entailing an investment of Rs 460 billion, of which 15 have been prioritised for development, involving an investment of Rs 220 billion. The Model Concession Agreement for the same was finalised in October 2021 and witnessed a modification in 2022. In a recent development, the MMLP in Jogighopa, Assam, has commenced construction and is expected to be completed by end-2023, and would be connected by road, rail, waterways and air. Further, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways plans to award around 6 MMLPs in 2023-24.
Bharatmala Phase II was initially expected to receive an approval this year, which entailed an investment of Rs 3 trillion for the construction of around 5,000 km of fenced-off highways. However, as per media sources, this second phase may be replaced with a 20-year project, focusing on highway construction with an investment of around Rs 20 trillion. The Vision 2047 is likely to be prioritised through this, which is expected to see the construction of highway networks spanning 50,000 km. Of this, around 30,000-35,000 km network would be for fenced-off expressways.
Key challenges
Despite developments under the programme, there are numerous challenges that are being faced. Given the increasing inflationary pressures, material costs have been witnessing a rise, in addition to the increasing cost of land acquisition faced by agencies. In addition, plans for wider highways have led to overshooting of budgeted costs. The programme has witnessed an almost doubling of costs from the initial outlay.
One of the key aims of the programme is enhancing freight movement in the country. The developments of MMLPs, however, are not seen to be progressing at a rapid pace.
The way forward
Post completion, the programme is expected to connect around 550 districts, up from the current 300, through national highway linkages, It will witness the bridging of infrastructure gaps, an increase in the number of corridors and an increase in the average speed on national highways by around 25 per cent from 32 km per hour, among others.
There is, however, a need to overcome the limitations faced and maintain the targeted pace of development. Given the objectives, the Bharatmala programme is expected to bring about significant improvements in the movement of freight and passenger in the country, with targeted outcomes such as the improvement in road transportation and a push towards economic growth.
