Highway News
Odisha’s Longest Bridge Over Mahanadi River Inaugurated
Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the state’s longest bridge over the river Mahanadi at Gopinathpur in the city of Cuttack which will connect Badamba Narasinghpur to Baideshwar of Banki. The will now shorten the distance between Badamba and Baideswhar, Banki by 45km and will also provide connectivity to Shinghanath Temple. The newly inaugurated bridge will benefit over 5 lakh people as well as contribute to the development of agriculture, tourism and commerce in the region. The Odisha government also said the newly inaugurated ‘T’ shaped bridge spans 3.4km long and has been built at a cost of ₹ 111 crore.
It will also benefit devotees visiting Baba Singhanath’s Bali Makar Jatra in Badamba block. Every year, the State government builds a 3-km long fair weather road (pedestrian track) on the Mahanadi river bed at a cost of ₹ 14- ₹ 15 lakh to facilitate communication for devotees. The road gets washed away during rainy season.
SC Allows Widening Of 3 Hill Stretches
In view of security concerns, the Supreme Court allowed the widening of three strategic stretches on the 900km long Char Dham highway project. However, the widening will be subject to compliance of a top court-appointed panel’s recommendations on environmental concerns arising due to the project.
The order came on a December 2020 plea by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to widen three strategically important stretches — the national highways from Rishikesh to Mahana, Rishikesh to Gangotri, and Tanakpur to Pithoragarh. The ministry said the roads serve as feeder roads to the India-China border.
“We must… arrive at the delicate balance of environmental considerations such that they do not impede infrastructural development specifically in areas of strategic importance, which is crucial to the security of nation,” the court ruled, after analysing the MoD’s argument and concerns raised by NGO Citizens of Green Doon, which opposed the plea.
Govt Sanctions 23 Road Projects Worth Over ₹ 1,814 Crore In Madhya Pradesh
The government has approved a total of 23 road projects worth ₹ 1814.9 crore for the state of Madhya Pradesh. These road projects, which have been approved under the Central Road Fund scheme, have a length of over 600 km, according to MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan. These government-sanctioned projects include four road projects of Gwalior as well as the much-needed elevated corridor over Bairagarh in the city of Bhopal to ease the busy Bhopal-Indore Road’s congestion.
According to State Public Works Department Minister Gopal Bhargava, a proposal was submitted by Chouhan amounting to ₹ 4,080 crore under the central road fund. Under the Central Road Fund scheme, the full amount for the road construction is given by the Central government while the cost of land acquisition, shifting of electric poles as well as other properties is borne by the state government, Bhargava said.