Cabinet greenlights two highway projects worth Rs 20,668 crore

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved two highway projects worth Rs 20,668 crore, paving the way for the construction of Nashik- Solapur-Akkalkot Corridor and widening of NH-326.

In Maharashtra, the corridor project has been approved with a total outlay of Rs 19,142 crore, while Rs 1,562 crore has been allocated for the widening project in Odisha. "This project will provide connectivity to important regional cities such as Nashik, Ahilyanagar, Solapur connecting to Kurnool, as indicated in the map. This infrastructure is a significant step to facilitate integrated transport infrastructure development under the PM Gatishakti National Master Plan principle," the press statement read.

All about Nashik- Solapur-Akkalkot Corridor

The greenfield corridor from Nashik to Akkalkot is proposed to be connected to Delhi-Mumbai Expressway near Vadhawan port interchange, Agra-Mumbai corridor at Nashik at junction with NH-60 (Adegaon) and Samruddhi Mahamarg at Pangri (near Nashik).


As per the press statement, the proposed corridor will provide through connectivity from west coast to east coast. From Chennai port end, 4-lane corridors are already in progress from Chennai to Hasapur (MH Border) via Thiruvallur, Renigunta, Kadappa and Kurnool (700 km long).

The primary purpose of the proposed access-controlled six-lane greenfield project corridor is to improve travel efficiency and is expected to reduce travel time by 17 hours and reduce the travel distance by 201 km.

Nashik – Akkalkot (Solapur) connectivity will improve logistics efficiency for freight originating and terminating at major National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) nodes of Kopparthy and Orvakal. Nashik – Talegaon Dighe part of the section also addresses the requirement for development of Pune-Nashik Expressway, as identified by NICDC as a part of proposed new Expressway being taken up by the State Government of Maharashtra.

The project provides high speed corridor designed for improved safety and uninterrupted traffic movement, reducing travel time, congestion, and operating costs. Importantly, the project will enhance the basic infrastructure in the region, contributing to the overall economic development of Nashik, Ahilyanagar, Dharashiv, and Solapur districts.

The 6-lane access-controlled greenfield corridor with close tolling, supporting average vehicular speeds of 60 km/h with design speed of 100 km/h. This will reduce the overall travel time to approximately 17 hours (Reduce by 45% from 31 hours), while offering safer, faster, and uninterrupted connectivity for both passenger and freight vehicles.

The project will generate about 251.06 lakh man-days of direct employment and 313.83 lakh man-days of indirect employment. The project will also induce additional employment opportunities due to increase in economic activity in the vicinity of the proposed corridor.

All about widening project:

The widening project is located in Odisha and traverses three districts — Gajapati, Rayagada, and Koraput. The corridor connects major towns such as Mohana, Rayagada, Laxmipur, and Koraput, providing improved intra-state connectivity within Odisha and enhancing inter-state linkage with Andhra Pradesh through the southern end of NH-326. The total capital cost for the project is Rs 1,526.21 crore, which includes a civil construction cost of Rs 966.79 crore.

As per the government statement, the upgradation will provide direct and improved connectivity from Mohana–Koraput into major economic and logistics corridors — linking with NH-26, NH-59, NH-16 and the Raipur–Visakhapatnam corridor and improving last-mile access to Gopalpur port, Jeypore airport and several railway stations. The corridor connects important industrial and logistic nodes (JK Paper, Mega Food Park, NALCO, IMFA, Utkal Alumina, Vedanta, HAL) and education/tourism hubs (Central University of Odisha, Koraput Medical College, Taptapani, Rayagada), thereby facilitating faster freight movement, reducing travel time and enabling regional economic development.

The work will be implemented on EPC mode. The work is targeted to be completed in 24 months from the appointed date for each package, followed by a five-year defect liability/maintenance period (total contract engagement envisaged as 7 years: 2 years construction + 5 years DLP).