Pragati Ka Highway: Breathtaking video highlights India’s giant strides in road connectivity

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Nitin Gadkari is one of the most performing ministers in the Narendra Modi-led government.  If there is one thing that one can say with certainty is that India has made significant gains in road connectivity in last few years and the Road and Transport Ministry led by Gadkari has been in the centre of the infra-development push of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The pace of road construction under Gadkari’s tenure has been phenomenal when you compare it with previous governments. Whether it is Zozilla tunnel in Jammu & Kashmir or the Bhupen Hazarika Bridge (also known as Dhola-Sadia bridge) connecting Dhola to Tinsukiya town.

On Tuesday, the Transport Minister’s office tweeted a breath-taking video highlighting India’s giant strides in road connectivity. Tagged as #NamumkinAbMumkinHai and #PragatiKaHighway, the video showcases how connectivity across India has improved with Zojila Tunnel, Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Kota Hanging Bridge, Bhupen Hazarika Bridge, Madurai-Ramanathapuram, Chenani-Nashri Tunnel, Eastern Peripheral Expressway, JNPT Road Connectivity and Ahmedabad-Vadodara Expressway.

Take a look at the video:

Here’s a quick look at the key infrastructure push during the past five years

1. Zojila Tunnel, Jammu & Kashmir – Too boost winter economic activities in Ladakh

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the Zojila tunnel project that would provide connectivity between Srinagar-Kargil and Leh. At 14.2 km, Zojila tunnel would be India’s longest. The estimated cost is Rs 6,809 crore. 

2. Bhupen Hazarika Bridge, Assam – Brings down the travel time between Assam and Arunachal by up to 4 hours. India’s longest bridge, spanning 9.3 km across the Brahmaputra. Futuristic infrastructure that will power India's growth.

3. Delhi-Meerut Express Way, Delhi- India's first 14-lane highway described by PM Modi as 'road to freedom from pollution'. Aims to provide faster and safer connectivity between Delhi and Meerut. The estimated cost is Rs 7,500 crore

4. Madurai-Ramanathapuram, Tamil Nadu- The project is approved by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). The 115 km road project is estimated to cost Rs 734.55 crore

5. Kota Hanging Bridge, Rajasthan- The Bridge is 30 metres wide and 1.4 kilometres long. The construction of the bridge has been managed by Hyundai Engineering of South Korea. The estimated cost is Rs 277.67 crore.

6. Chenani-Nashri Tunnel, Jammu & Kashmir- The longest road tunnel in the country. It will reduce the distance between Jammu and Srinagar from 41 km to 9.2 km. Smoke and heat dampeners will react quickly in fire incidents. 118 CCTVs, one every 75 metres. Built at Rs 3,720 crore.

7. Eastern Peripheral Expressway, Delhi- The expressway is powered by solar panels. 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilowatt (4 MW). The state-of-the-art road has auto challans for over-speeding. Built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore.

8. JNPT Road Connectivity, New Mumbai- The road will serve to decongest the heavy traffic resulting from containerized vehicles moving to and from the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai. The work on the project is in full swing.

9. Ahmedabad-Vadodara Expressway, Gujarat- Built at a total cost of Rs 550 crore. Brings down the travel time between Ahmedabad and Vadodara in about 75 minutes. The expressway is a vital link between the two cities.