The Ministry of Transport informed the House that it is primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of the National Highways (NH). (Representative image: Associated Press)
Of the 350 km damaged this year, 278 km was recorded in four states alone – Meghalaya (89 km), Mizoram (67 km), Karnataka (64 km) and Assa Mbang (58 km). In addition, Maharashtra and Sikkim have also suffered damage to 13 kilometers each this year.
In the first three months of this fiscal year, at least 350 kilometers of national highways were damaged across India, including 89 kilometers in Meghalaya alone. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) told India's Parliament on Wednesday that the reasons included damage due to severe flooding and rainfall.
Replying to a question from Rajya Sabha member Rajiv Shukla, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also said that there was an incident of bridge collapse on a national highway in the country this year due to floods, rains or cyclones. Shukla asked the ministry if it was aware of the damage to highways and collapse of highway bridges due to rains this year.
“There is a Bailey Bridge on NH-37 (Irang Bailey Bridge) in Manipur and for its rehabilitation, a permanent RCC 70R bridge of 123 m span has been constructed nearby,” Gadkari said.
Of the 350 km damaged this year, 278 km was recorded in four states alone – Meghalaya (89 km), Mizoram (67 km), Karnataka (64 km) and Assa Mbang (58 km). In addition, Maharashtra and Sikkim also suffered damage to 13 kilometers each this year.
The ministry informed the House that it is primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of National Highways (NH).
“The development and maintenance of NH is a continuous process. The ministry and its various implementing agencies such as National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), Border Roads Organization (BRO), etc., The status of NH, including the condition of bridges, Public Works Department (PWD)/Road Construction Department (RCD)/State Government Corporations/Union Territories (UTs) will be assessed from time to time,” it said.
Maintenance work at NHs is therefore carried out from time to time to keep the highway in a suitable condition for traffic, it added.
The ministry also informed the House that it has put in place a mechanism to ensure maintenance and repair (M&R) of all parts of NH, including bridges, through responsible maintenance agencies.
“The M&R of the New Hampshire section where development work has commenced or where an OMT concession/O&M contract has been awarded is the responsibility of the relevant concessionaire/contractor until the deficiencies are over The ministry said that for national highway sections carried out under Toll Operate and Transfer (TOT) and Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT), the M&R responsibility lies with the concerned concessionaire until the end of the concession period.
