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ROAD NETWORKS IN INDIA

Overview

With over 3.3 million km of roadways, India has the third largest road network
in the world (behind USA and China)
India has about 65,500 km of National Highways, 130,000 km of State
Highways and 4.67 million km of District Roads and 2.65 million km of rural
and urban roads
India has the highest density of highways in the world (0.66 km of highway
per sq km of territory)
Indias road networks carry nearly 65% of freight traffic and 85% of passenger
traffic in the country
Traffic on roads is growing at about 7-10% per annum while number of vehicles
is growing about 12% per annum

Grand Trunk Road

The Grand Trunk Road (GT Road) is one of the oldest and longest roads in
the Indian subcontinent
It runs from Sonargaon (near Dhaka) in Bangladesh to Peshawar in
Pakistan, covering a distance of 2500 km
In India, it runs through Kolkata, Kanpur, Varanasi, Allahabad, Delhi, Ludhiana,
Jalandhar and Amritsar
The stretch between Kolkata and Kanpur is designated NH-2, the stretch between
Kanpur and Delhi NH-91, and between Delhi and Wagah NH-1
The Grand Trunk road was commissioned by Sher Shah Suri in the 16th
century to connect Agra with Sasaram (Bihar). It was later expanded by the
British to run from Bengal to Peshawar
The Grand Trunk Road is now part of the Golden Quadrilateral project

TYPES OF ROAD NETWORKS

National Highways

The National Highways are the primary long distance roadways in India
There is about 65,500 km of National Highways in India, of which about 200
km have been designated as Expressways
The National Highways constitute only 2% of total roadways in India, but carry
about 40% of the total traffic
The longest National Highway in NH-7, which runs from Varanasi to
Kanyakumari (about 2369 km). The shortest National Highway is NH-47A,
which runs from Ernakulam to Kochi Port (about 6 km)
The Leh-Manali Highway is the highest highway in the world (average
elevation of about 5000 m). It connects Leh in Ladakh (Jammu and Kashmir) with
Manali in Himachal Pradesh. The Highway passes through some of the highest

mountain passes in the world including Rohtang La, Baralacha La,


Lachulung La and Tagland La
National Expressways

National Expressways make up about 200 km of the National Highways


network
The major difference between Highways and Expressways in India, is that the
latter have controlled access (i.e. entry and exit only at certain specific locations)
Connected
cities
Mumbai
suburbs

Lengt
h

Mumbai-Thane

23 km

Sion Panvel
Expressway

Mumbai
suburbs

25 km

National
Expressway 1

AhmadabadVadodara

90 km

Delhi-Gurgaon
Expressway

Delhi-Gurgaon

28 km

Expressway
Western
Expressway
Eastern
Expressway

Notes

25 km

12 lanes expressway
(6 in each direction)
First Expressway in India
Part of Golden Quadrilateral
Part of Golden Quadrilateral
Part of Golden Quadrilateral

Mumbai-Pune
Expressway

Mumbai-Pune

93 km

Indias first 6 lane, concrete, high-speed,


tolled, access controlled Expressway

State Highways

State Highways refers to the highways laid and maintained by the state
governments
These State Highways usually connect important cities, towns, district
headquarters within the State, and with important places in other states
They also link important cities of a state with the National Highways and State
Highways of neighbouring states
There is about 130,000 km of State Highways in India
State Highways are designated SH

District Roads

District Roads are important roads within a district connecting areas of production
with their markets

They also connect the towns with each other and with State and National
Highways
District Roads also connect Taluka headquarters with District headquarters in
various regions of a state
There is about 4.7 million km of District Roads in India
District Roads are administered by the state governments

Rural and urban roads

Rural and urban roads (especially rural) form the largest chunk of road networks
in India: about 2.65 million km
Rural roads are essential for transporting agricultural produce and products of
small scale industries to their markets in villages, towns and cities
In order to facilitate the development of rural roads, the Pradhan Mantri Gram
Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) has been established
Rural and urban roads are administered by the concerned local governments
(Panchayats, Municipal Corporations etc)

POLICIES AND PROGRAMMES

National Highways Development Project (NHDP)

The NHDP is a project to upgrade, rehabilitate and widen major highways in


India to a higher standard
The project was commissioned in 1998
The NHDP builds on existing National Highways and improves them to
better standards
The NHDP is being implemented in a phased manner consisting of seven phases.
The NHDP consists of two important components
o Golden Quadrilateral: This is Phase I of the NHDP. The Golden
Quadrilateral connects New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai.
Total length is 5846 km. It was completed (to a large extent) in 2003
o North-South East-West Corridor: This is Phase II of the NHDP. The
NSEW Corridor connects Srinagar with Kanyakumari and Silchar
(Assam) with Porbandar (Gujarat). Total length is 7300 km. It is
currently under construction. The North-South and East-West corridors
meet at Jhansi (Uttar Pradesh)
The NHDP is implemented by the National Highways Authority of India
(NHAI)

Special Accelerated Road Development Programme in the North East Region

Programme approved in 2009


Implemented by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
The programme aims to provide connectivity to all state capitals and district
headquarters in the North East region

The programme includes upgrading of other stretches of National Highways and


state highways considered critical for economic development

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)

Launched 2000
Implemented by Ministry of Rural Development
The PMGSY is a nationwide plan to provide good all-weather road
connectivity to unconnected villages
The goal of the PMGSY is to provide connectivity to all villages
o With a population of at least 1000 by 2003
o With a population of at least 500 by 2007
o In hill states, tribal and desert area villages with population of at least 500
by 2003
o In hill states, tribal and desert area villages with population of at least 250
by 2007
In order to monitor the implementation of the programme, the Centre for
Development of Advance Computing (CDAC) developed the Online
Management, Monitoring and Accounting Scheme (OMMAS), which has
grown to become one of the largest computer database in India

Central Road Fund

Established in 1998
The primary objective of the Fund is to provide financing to meet the challenges
of accelerated funding requirement of road development projects
To support the Fund, an additional duty of Rs 0.50 per litre was levied on petrol
and high speed diesel
Of this revenue, 50% goes for development of rural roads, and the other 50% for
development of National Highways and other roads

GOVERNMENTAL BODIES

National Highways Authority of India (NHAI)

Established 1988, headquarters New Delhi


The NHAI is responsible for the development, maintenance and management
of National Highways in India
The NHAI is currently implementing the NHDP
Functions under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways

National Institute for Training of Highway Engineers (NITHE)

Established 1983, located Noida


The NITHE is the apex training institute for training highways and bridge
engineers in the country

The objectives of the NITHE include


o Impart training to engineers
o Assist other organisations in developing their own training institutions
o Promote cooperation and knowledge exchange in the field of highway
engineering between engineers in India and abroad
The NITHE also conducts training programmes for engineers from other Central
and state government departments, PSUs and private enterprises
Functions under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways

Central Road Research Institute (CRRI)

Established 1948, location New Delhi


Functions under the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Ministry
of Science of Technology
The primary objective of the Institute is to provide research, technical and
consultancy services in the areas of highways engineering, bridge engineering,
geotechnical engineering, and traffic and transport planning

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