Highway projects picking up as Centre's drive makes land acquisition easier

Creation of land banks, flexible contracts, incentivising state govt officials among measures taken, helped NHAI construct 9,829 km of roads in 2017-18

The Rs 110-billion Eastern Peripheral Expressway inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 27 is one of the many highway projects that could see the light of the day only due to the easing of the land acquisition process.

Incentivizing state government officials, flexible approach adopted in highway contracts and creation of land bank were some of the measures that yielded the desired results in the land acquisition department. This, in turn helped the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) construct 9,829 km of roads in 2017-18.

According to data with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the