Gadkari apologises for delay in work on Mumbai-Goa highway, assures project to be completed by year-end

On Thursday, he laid the foundation stone for the concretization of 3 highway projects in Raigad. The total length of the project is 63.9 kilometres pegged at ₹414.68 crore.

Panvel: Nitin Gadkari, union minister for road transport and highways, on Thursday, apologised for the delay in the work on the Mumbai-Goa highway and assured that it will be completed by December this year.

Navi Mumbai, India - March 30, 2023: Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari laid the foundation stone of three national highway projects worth Rs. 414.68 crore and 63,900 km long and new project worth Rs. 15,000 crore, at Palaspe Village, Karnala Naka, in Raigad district, India, on Thursday, March 30, 2023. (Photo by Bachchan Kumar/ HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

On Thursday, he laid the foundation stone for the concretization of 3 highway projects in Raigad. The total length of the project is 63.9 kilometres pegged at ₹414.68 crore.

“I, as the minister of the department, apologise for the delay in Mumbai-Goa highway work. The delay has been a very sad state of affairs, some aspects of which can’t be revealed. I am tired of it. The project awarded in 2011 had been in limbo due to contractor issues and then land acquisition and environmental issues,” said Gadkari at the ceremony.

The agreements of erring contractors were terminated, he said, adding, “I have updates of all the packages underway presently and can assure that the highway project will be fully completed by December this year and people will be able to use the 4-lane expanded highway from the new year.”

Gadkari added that he would personally inspect the highway and speak to the stakeholders to resolve any hurdles in the project. He added that the highway touches 66 tourist spots in the Konkan region which will boost tourism.

“It will also enable faster transportation of fruits and other products from the region thereby boosting business as well. It will connect JNPT and Dighi ports which will boost the country’s progress,” said the union minister.

Additionally, on Thursday, he announced three new projects worth ₹15,000 crore in Raigad. These projects will provide better connectivity with Mumbai and Pune along with Goa, Karnataka and Gujarat.

“We shall start the ₹13,000-crore Morbe-Karanjade road work that will go up to Jawaharlal Nehru Port and cut down the travel time on the Mumbai-Delhi route to just 12.5 hours,” said Gadkari.

“The Kalamboli junction in Navi Mumbai is a nightmare due to the heavy traffic jam which I too have faced. We have prepared a new design for the area of a 7-kilometre project worth ₹1,200 crore, the Bhoomi Pujan of which will be done next month. ₹1,146-crore work at Pagote junction for a green field highway too will begin soon,” he added.

Gadkari also asked for black spots to be identified by special committees headed by the MPs. “We have the largest number of accident cases in the world with 5 lakh cases in a year in which 1.5 lakh people die. This is more than those dying due to Covid or terrorism. 60% of those deaths are in the age group of 18 to 34 years. This is very unfortunate,” he said.

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The projects include the work of the Panvel to Kasu section of National Highway 66 the Mumbai-Goa highway which is vital for the Konkan region. The section is 42.3 kilometres long and involves a capital cost of ₹251.96 crore.

There is also work on 2 lane expansion and concretization of the Rajewadi to Warandh village section of national highway 965DD which is 13 kilometres in length and will cost ₹126.73 crore. The third work is the strengthening of the Warandh to Pune Raigad district border of National highway 965DD, which is 8.6 kilometres long and will cost ₹35.99 crore.