 "union cabinet")
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave its approval for widening of the 135-km stretch of Khowai-Harina road in Tripura, and construction of a new 4.56 km long, 6-lane bridge on the river Ganga, connecting Digha and Sonepur in Bihar, according to an official statement.
The Khowai-Harina road project involves investment of Rs 2,486.78 crore which includes a loan component of Rs 1,511.70 crore (JPY 23,129 million), the statement said.
The loan assistance will be from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under Official Development Assistance (ODA) scheme, it added.
The project is envisaged to facilitate better road connectivity between various parts of Tripura and to provide alternative access to Assam and Meghalaya from Tripura apart from existing NH-8.
"The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval for improvement and widening to two lane with paved shoulder of road from km 101.300 (Khowai) to km 236.213 (Harina) of NH-208, covering a total length of 134.913 kms in Tripura," the statement said.
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The statement noted that development of the project stretch of NH-208 would not only improve Interstate connectivity between Assam and Tripura via NH-208A but also reduce the transit time and provide safer connectivity for the travellers.
The project stretch also passes very close to the Bangladesh border and it would improve connectivity to Bangladesh through Kailashahar, Kamalpur and Khowai Border Check Post, it said.
The statement said land border trade would also potentially grow with the improvement in road Network in the region through development of the project road.
The construction period for the project will be 2 years which includes the maintenance of these National Highways stretches for 5 years (in the case of flexible pavement)/ 10 years (in the case of rigid pavement) after completion of construction.
The total cost for the 6-lane bridge on the river Ganga, connecting Digha and Sonepu project is estimated at Rs 3,064.45 crore, including Rs 2,233.81 crore for civil construction, it added.
The bridge will make traffic faster and easier, resulting in the overall development of the state, especially north Bihar, the statement noted.
"The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today gave its approval for the construction of the new 4,556 m long, 6-lane high level/ extra dosed cable-stayed bridge across River Ganga (Parallel to Western Side of existing Digha-Sonepur Rail-Cum Road Bridge) and its approaches on both sides in the districts of Patna and Saran (NH-139W) in Bihar on EPC mode," it said.
Digha (situated at Patna and South Bank of Ganga River) and Sonepur (North Bank of Ganga River in Saran District) are presently connected by a rail cum road bridge for the movement of light vehicles only.
Therefore, the statement said, the present road cannot be used for the transport of goods and commodities, which is a major economic blockade.
The constraint will be removed by providing the bridge between Digha and Sonepur, and goods and commodities can be transported once the bridge is constructed, unleashing the economic potential of the region, as per the statement.
The work is to be implemented on an EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) model with the use latest technology like 5D-building information modelling (BIM), bridge health monitoring system (BHMS), monthly drone mapping to ensure quality of construction and operations.
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