The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has updated the standard-operating procedure (SOP) and format of proposals for national highway (NH) projects under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan. The ministry or department will now have to explain how the project will contribute to multi-modal connectivity, and how it will connect manufacturing and economic zones to infrastructural connectivity.
Specific details to be shared
In an office memorandum, signed by Bidur Kant Jha, Director (New Technology for Highway Development), the ministry said for consultation of NH projects, certain specific details should also be shared that include: the types of commodity and estimated commodity quantity likely to be generated from economic nodes or zones or clusters; specific NH/road corridors to be used and their end destinations; analytical substantiation of reduced logistics cost with the project scenario; estimated traffic likely to be induced along with probable traffic distribution and its impact on NH corridors – both on the project corridor being discussed in the network planning group (NPG) and other adjacent NH corridors.
“For the projects submitted subsequently by Ministries, the submission should include the advantages which the project will accrue to the industries and economic activities in the region. The Ministry/Dept should explain how the project will contribute to multi-modal connectivity, connect manufacturing and economic zones to infrastructural connectivity, etc. Compliance to GatiShakti concept is critical, and accordingly it is required to justify the GatiShakti concept fulfilment,” the order, issued on December 23, reads.
The details have to be covered in the project reports of the NH proposals from now on, the order said, adding that the detailed project report (DPR) consultants are requested to provide the details for the projects for which DPR is completed and will be presented to NPG for consultation.
The order was marked to all the principal secretaries/secretaries, engineers-in-chief/ chief engineers of all states/UTs public works departments dealing with national highways, and other centrally sponsored schemes and state schemes.
What is PM GatiShakti National Master Plan?
The Union Cabinet cleared the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan for multi-modal connectivity to economic zones on October 21, 2021. It is a giant stride in India’s ambitious goal of achieving a US $5 trillion economy.
Under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, everything, from roads to railways, from aviation to agriculture, various ministries, and departments would be linked. A technology platform has also been prepared for every mega project so that every department has accurate information on time.
The project was planned to bring in various stakeholders together and help integrate different modes of transportation. The master plan takes a holistic approach to sector-specific developments by integrating 16 ministries in a joint committee to implement and monitor Rs 100 lakh crore of investment. One of the important features of the master plan is the establishment of economic zones to boost the ease of doing business in India.
Powered by Bharatmala, in the road transport and highways sector two lakh kilometres of national highway network is to be achieved by 2024-25. Along the coastal areas, 5,590 km of four and six-lane national highways will be completed by 2024-25. All state capitals in the Northeast are to be connected with either four-lane national highways or two alternate alignments of two-lane configurations each by 2024-25.
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