The West Bengal government has utilised only Rs 13 crore from the Rs 125 crore provided by the Central government for the upkeep of national highways in the state.
Major general B C Khandouri, Union minister of state for road and highways (independent charge), said the Plan money, if remained unused, would go back to central fund at the end of this financial year.
Charting out the future plan of the Rs 54,000-crore National Highway Development Programme (NHDP), the minister said the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has already awarded Rs 18,000 crore worth of contracts and contracts worth Rs 8,000 crore would be given in a couple of months.
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Asked if the state could ask for more funds, the minister said the possibility would not arise as the state was yet to spend what it was allotted in the first place. He said he could only advice the state government on improving its roads. "But I cannot seek an explanation from them if they do not use the central funds," he noted.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata on Saturday, the minister also informed that work on road connecting Haldia port with other ports of the country would be inaugurated within two months. The project is part of the NHAI's plan to improve connectivity between country's 10 major ports through 1000 km of roads.
Under this project, nearly 14,000 km roads would either be built or developed into four lanes. Of this, the Golden Quadrilateral (connecting all four metros), north-south and east-west corridor and major port connectivity are three components.
West Bengal would have 500 km of highway. Out of this, 390 km is for the golden quadrilateral, 47 km of east-west corridor and 53 km for port connectivity. All the projects, ongoing or otherwise, would be completed by 2007.