Road to progress: A promising break from poor execution of public projects

Even accounting for Road and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari's penchant for overstating his ministry's achievements, the 135-km EPE represents a noteworthy milestone on his watch

In a country where delays and poor project implementation have long been the norm, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) that Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated over the weekend offers an encouraging symbol of the art of the possible against formidable odds. Conceived of in 2006, together with a western expressway to decongest the National Capital Region and offer its denizens relief from dangerous levels of pollution, the proposal appeared to be headed the way of all major projects in India — from the Mumbai Sea Link to the coastal roads project — with glitches over land acquisition stalling or delaying