NHAI plans to bid out projects worth 3.4 lakh crore

NEW DELHI: National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) plans to bid out 124 highways and expressway projects worth Rs 3.4 lakh crore in present monetary yr (2025-26). NHAI has put the whole checklist of projects in public area, amid a way of uncertainty among the many freeway builders.In final two years, there was a slowdown in award (bidding out) of projects by NHAI, after the halt of govt’s flagship Bharatmala programme for freeway improvement. While NHAI bid out projects of 6,003 km in 2022-23, this has slowed down to 3,339 km in 2023-24 and elevated marginally to 4,008 km in 2024-25. Govt’s resolution to open bids solely after 90% availability of land has been one of many causes behind slowing down of projects.A senior NHAI official mentioned the target behind placing the checklist of the projects in public area is to make the freeway builders aware of them and put together themselves. He accepted that slowdown in award of projects in previous two years has been a matter of concern, which has created some sense of uncertainty amongst freeway builders.This time, Nearly 78% of projects will likely be supplied below public non-public partnership (PPP) mode, together with improvement of 476 km of Gorakhpur-Kishangan-Siliguri freeway, costing round Rs 35,000 crore, Patna-Purnea stretch (282 km) with estimated price of Rs 17,076 crore and two packages of Nashik-Ahmednagar freeway, with size of 374 km, entailing an funding of little over Rs 19,000 crore. Rest of the projects will likely be awarded below totally govt-funded mode.