National highways in India will soon introduce satellite-based tolling systems, the Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari announced. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will begin implementing this new system by March 2024. This announcement was made by the Minister during a session in the Rajya Sabha.
India has recently informed the World Bank about its efforts to reduce waiting times at toll plazas and streamline export release processes at land ports. The introduction of FASTag has significantly reduced the average waiting time at toll plazas to just 47 seconds, a substantial improvement from the previous average of 714 seconds. In discussions with World Bank representatives, the government outlined its plans to further improve the country’s infrastructure.
Between April and November of this fiscal year, the construction and expansion of National Highways have increased by approximately 10 per cent compared to the same period between 2011 and 2023. However, the allocation of new construction projects has decreased by 52 per cent this year.
Data from the road transport ministry shows that agencies within the ministry have completed or expanded 5,248 km of National Highways by November, compared to 4,766 km during the same period last year. However, with less than four months remaining in the financial year, achieving the government’s target of constructing and expanding around 12,000 km of highways seems challenging.
The pace of bidding for new projects has also significantly slowed down this year. Between April and November of the previous year, agencies had bid for 5,382 km of work, while this year, the figure has only reached 2,815 km.
There are concerns about the delay in approving the revised Bharatmala Phase-1 program or alternate initiatives, which is affecting project bidding. This lack of project awards this year may impact the progress of construction in the fiscal year 2024-25.
The finance ministry has instructed the road ministry not to initiate new projects under Bharatmala without fresh Cabinet approval. This decision has affected the development of over 8,000 km of National Highway stretches under the government’s flagship program.