National Highways

High bitumen prices and India’s import dependence are squeezing highway project economics, prompting contractors to seek an extension of the compensation mechanism beyond September.

Data from IHMCL unveils India’s toll economics: how high-volume corridors, shifting private participation, and the FASTag annual pass are driving highway revenue models.

The ministry of road transport and highways has tightened how it rates DPR consultants, giving associate firms only 75% of the lead consultant's rating instead of an equal score.

The revised norms cap associate ratings at 75% to tie scores to actual responsibility and fix planning bottlenecks that have slowed highway execution.

The Centre will launch an ambitious ₹2 trillion five-year programme to decongest highways and urban centres by developing a 10,000 km network of bypasses and ring roads around 500 cities and towns across the country, two persons aware of the development said.

A government study found trucks spend so much time loading and unloading cargo that the benefits of India's high-speed highways are being diluted, prompting a push for time-bound deliveries and faster turnaround at warehouses and factories.

The government is likely to retain 10,000-km construction target this fiscal as it focuses on clearing delayed projects and bringing private capital back into road building through the BOT route.

In a bid to eliminate persistent highway project delays, MoRTH is proposing stricter pre-award filters, ensuring all critical land and structural clearances are in place before contracts are awarded. This shift aims to make highway projects more execution-ready.