Approach Paper for the Twelfth Five Year Plan - of Planning ...

40 Approach to the Twelfth Five Year Plan
Roads
4.5 India has the second largest road network in the world totalling 4.2 million kms but most of it
is of poor quality. Half the network is not paved and the National Highways account for only 2.0 per
cent of the total length. A start was made at giving a push to investment in roads in the Eleventh Plan.
The National Highways Development Programme (NHDP)-I (Golden Quadrilateral) and NHDP-II
(North-South East West links) were started before the Eleventh Plan, but were effectively built in the
Eleventh Plan. Small portions remain to be completed and these will be completed in the Twelfth Plan. The
more heavily trafficked part of this network has to be strengthened through conversion to six-lane roads.
4.6 This programme, called NHDP-VI has commenced and will be progressively expanded. In order to
ensure the inter-connectivity of districts, work in various phases of NHDP-III, IV, V will be progressively
expanded. In addition, a new programme for construction of roads in the North East was begun in the
Eleventh Plan, including the proposed Trans-Arunachal Highway. The completion of this network in the
North East, along with road connectivity to Myanmar and Bangladesh will help open up this route to
mutually beneficial economic cooperation with Southeast Asia.
4.7 A master plan for 18,637 kilometres of expressways, with new alignments for both passenger and
freight movements in high traffic density corridors based on ‘access control toll’ needs to be taken up.
These roads will be either four or six lane. The proposed National Expressway Authority of India is expected
to take the initiatives for both land acquisition and to get the work executed under BOT mode.
4.8 A significant part of the existing NH consists of single-lane roads, which have suffered from a
prolonged neglect. Their length is about 20,000 km, which could increase further during the Twelfth
Plan on account of expansion of the NH network. These single–lane national highways would have to be
upgraded and augmented to two-lane standards. Since most of these roads have low density traffic, they
may not be viable on PPP basis. Experience also suggests that annuity based projects are comparatively
expensive, while conventional contacts are prone to time and cost overruns. The Ministry of Road
Transport and Highways is, therefore, adopting the EPC (turnkey) mode of construction. A programme
for upgradation of 20,000 km to two-lane standards for EPC basis could therefore, be taken up during the
Twelfth Plan for which resources would have to be mobilised through toll revenues, market borrowings
and additional budgetary support.
4.9 Taking a longer term view, the scope for expanding the National Highway beyond the present 2.0
per cent of the total network needs to be carefully considered. The Twelfth Plan should set a reasonable
target for what the National Highway component of the total network should be over the next twenty
years and then workout a phased programme of expanding the National Highways to achieve the objective.
The expansion should be on the basis of well-defined criteria giving due weight to network capacity needs
and also the need to reach underserved areas.
4.10 In addition to the development of the National Highway network it will be essential to develop
State Highways and District roads to ensure full connectivity. States must recognise that good quality
roads are crucial for the competitiveness of investment in the state and the Twelfth Plan for each state