The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has achieved a milestone in the construction of Odisha’s first highway tunnel on the Raipur-Visakhapatnam Expressway. The 3.42 km long, 3-lane twin tunnel project’s Tube 2 in Koraput district marked its first breakthrough.
NHAI set a national record by excavating 750 m of the tunnel in a month and completing 36.8 m face excavation in a single day from four faces. Approved under Phase-I of the Bharatmala Pariyojana with an estimated cost of Rs160 billion, the project includes constructing a 124 km long road along with the twin tunnels.
NHAI has acquired 773 hectares of private land, 307 hectares of government land, and 365 hectares of forest land in Koraput and Nabarangpur districts. Construction is progressing rapidly, with the project expected to be completed by 2025.