26.4.13

NH-17 to be widened



The lane expansion of Mumbai-Goa highway’s 366-km stretch from Indapur to Zarap has inched ahead. The Centre has given in-principle approval to expand the highway from two to four lanes to eliminate head-on collisions. But ministers and officials involved in the project say that because of factors like seeking clearances, land acquisition and the tendering process, work is unlikely to start before 2015.
The project will take three-four years to be finished as it involves long-drawn tasks such as digging tunnels through ghats, widening bridges and eliminating hairpin bends.


NH 17 FOUR-LANE PROJECT
Length:  475 km
Phases: 6
Cost: Rs.4,500 cr

HURDLES FOR PHASES II-V
Of the project cost of Rs.3600 crore, nearly Rs.800 crore will be required for land acquisition—a time-consuming job
Submissions for environmental clearance have been made, but formal approvals will take time
Tendering process involves selection of developers and arranging finances as the project will be implemented through public-private partnership
Experts say the actual expansion work will start only in 2015, that too if all goes according to plan
The project will take three to four years to complete as it involves work such as digging tunnels through ghats, widening bridges, eliminating hairpin bends, and creating bypasses, flyovers, service roads, and vehicular and pedestrian underpasses

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