Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for 28 National Highways (NH) projects worth Rs 6,600 crore in Odisha. Despite canceling his visit to Odisha at the last minute, Gadkari launched these projects virtually. Among the projects inaugurated are a 79 km four-lane highway between Baharagora and Singara on NH-49, valued at Rs 1,203 crore, and a 78 km six-lane road from Chandikul to Bhadrak on NH-49. 16, costing Rs 2,035 crore.

Additionally, the Minister laid the foundation stone for 26 other road infrastructure projects in the state.

During the event, Gadkari highlighted the significant progress in the development of national highways in Odisha since 2014.

The total length of national highways in the state increased from 4,639 km to 5,753 km during this period. He added that the ministry has allocated nearly Rs 1.50 lakh crore for highway development in Odisha.

He said that from 2014 to 2024, about 4,250 kilometers of roads were constructed in Odisha, with an expenditure of approximately Rs 33,000 crore.

Additionally, the minister said projects to construct another 1,312 kilometers of national highways, with an investment of Rs 22,000 crore, are underway and are expected to be completed during 2024-25.

He said the ministry is also preparing detailed project reports (DPR) for the construction of 746 km of roads with an estimated cost of Rs 60,000 crore.

Gadkari announced plans for various projects, including a 111-km greenfield ring road around Bhubaneswar city, costing Rs 6,253 crore.

This project will be divided into two packages and is expected to benefit the residents of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and Khurda.

Under package I, a 71 km six-lane highway will be constructed from Rameswar to Govindpur at a total cost of Rs 4,426 crore, while the road from Govindpur to Tangi (40 km) will be taken up under package II with a cost of Rs. 2,287 crores, the minister said.

Additionally, a 35km four-lane greenfield ring road will be constructed in Sambalpur for Rs 1,333 crore, with work scheduled to begin in October 2024.

Highlighting the government's focus on infrastructure development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating that by the end of this year, Odisha's national highway network will resemble roads in the USA.

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