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The Central Government is aiming to accelerate highway construction to 60 km per day, even as new project awards have slowed with the Bharatmala Pariyojana nearing completion. Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said the focus has shifted to faster execution, timely clearances and completing ongoing projects. For FY26, the ministry has set a National Highways construction target of 10,000 km, in line with recent years performance. Bharatmala, covering nearly 34,800 km, has been a key driver of road expansion so far. Gadkari also reiterated India's ambition to become the world's largest automobile market in the next decade, underlining the role of infrastructure and agriculture in driving long-term economic growth.
The Central Government is looking to significantly speed up highway construction across the country, with a target of building 60 km of highways per day. The intent was outlined by Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari while speaking at an industry forum, where he noted that the current pace of construction has slowed due to the absence of new projects under the Bharatmala Pariyojana. Advertisement
The minister indicated that fresh highway awards have moderated as the flagship Bharatmala programme has largely reached an advanced stage, leading to a temporary slowdown in new project starts. Despite this, the focus remains on accelerating execution through faster clearances, better project preparation, and completion of ongoing works.
Gadkari also spoke about the government's long-term ambition for the automobile sector, stating that India aims to become the world's largest automobile market over the next eight to ten years. At present, the automobile industry in the United States is valued at around INR 78 lakh crore, followed by China at INR 47 lakh crore, while India's auto industry stands at approximately INR 22 lakh crore. He stressed that strengthening agriculture would also be critical in supporting broader GDP growth alongside infrastructure expansion.
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, which oversees the development and maintenance of National Highways and National Expressways, has set a construction target of 10,000 km for National Highways in the current financial year 2025-26. This target has been determined based on the progress of ongoing projects and those proposed to be taken up, subject to the completion of pre-construction requirements such as land acquisition and clearances.
The construction target for 2025-26 is broadly in line with the previous financial year 2024-25, when the ministry had set a target of about 10,420 km. Against this, actual construction achieved was higher at around 10,660 km. Official data shows that the ministry constructed 12,349 km of national highways in 2023-24 and 10,331 km in 2022-23, reflecting fluctuations linked to project awards, execution capacity, and approvals.
Bharatmala Pariyojana, launched to enhance road connectivity and reduce logistics costs, covers a planned network of 34,800 km at an estimated cost of INR 5.35 lakh crore. The programme has played a major role in expanding India's highway network over the past few years, even as the current phase sees a shift from aggressive new awards to completion of existing stretches.
Source PTI
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