The Union government, through the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH), has set a target to award 10,000 km of national highway (NH) projects in the financial year 2025‑26 (FY 2026), aiming to reverse a downward trend in project awards over recent years.
Current Trend and the Recovery Target
- The volume of fresh NH project awards has dipped: from roughly 12,000 km in FY 2023 to about 7,500 km in FY 2024, and further down to approximately 6,000 km in FY 2025.
- With the new target of 10,000 km in FY 2026, the ministry plans to restore momentum and push ahead with highway infrastructure growth.
- The focus is not only on quantity (km) but also quality, speed of award, and enabling smoother execution of awarded contracts.
Why This Matters
- Connectivity & Growth: National highways are vital for linking economic hubs, improving logistics efficiency, and supporting regional development.
- Infrastructure Push: The target signals the government’s strong commitment to infrastructure for jobs, GDP growth, and transport efficiency.
- Execution Challenges: Awarding projects is the first step—realising construction, land acquisition, environmental clearances and quality outcomes remain key.
- Industry Impact: Contractors, developers and ancillary industries (steel, cement, equipment) stand to benefit from higher award volumes.
Key Considerations & Challenges
- Right‑of‑Way (RoW) & Clearances: In many cases awards are delayed due to land acquisition, forest/clearance issues—remedying these remains critical.
- Funding & Monetisation: Infrastructure funding (via toll‑operate‑transfer bundles, asset monetisation, InvITs) will need to scale alongside project awards.
- Execution Speed: Rapid awarding must translate into timely construction and hand‑over; past bottlenecks (monsoon delays, contractor constraints) must be managed.
- Sustainability and Quality: Awards should include environmental safeguards, maintenance provisions and future‑proofing (expressways, high‑speed corridors).
Key Static Facts for Competitive Exams
- Target for FY 2025‑26: Awarding 10,000 km of national highway projects.
- Previous Award Levels: ~12,000 km in FY 2023; ~7,500 km in FY 2024; ~6,000 km in FY 2025.
- Ministry: Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH), Government of India.
- Significance: Indicates renewed focus on infrastructure, especially highways, under national policy framework.