Govt approves Rs 1,756-crore road project in Gujarat

The government today approved a road project in Gujarat, entailing Rs 1,756 crore expenditure, under its flagship Gujarat under its flagship road building programme NHDP.

"The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given its approval for four/two laning of the Gadu-Dwarka section of National Highway-8E in Gujarat under the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) Phase IV on Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT-Annuity) in Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) pattern," an official statement said.

It said the cost of the project is estimated at Rs 1,756.36 crore including the cost of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other pre-construction activities.

The total length of the road will be about 209.89 km, out of which 119.7 km will be four laned and 90.19 km will be two laned with paved shoulders, it added. The project will expedite improvement of infrastructure in Gujarat and also reduce the time and cost of travel for traffic, particularly heavy traffic, plying between Gadu and Dwarka.

This road stretch links a number of sea ports on the western coast of India, apart from coastal places like Dwarka, Porbandar and Somnath.

The statement said the development of this stretch will also help in uplifting the socio-economic condition of this region and increase employment potential of local labourers for project activities.