Mumbai-Goa Highway work will be completed by December 2023: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday informed that the much-awaited construction work of Mumbai-Goa National Highway No 66 will be completed by December, 2023 and the road will be open for traffic in January 2024.

The Minister on Thursday conducted an aerial inspection of the construction work of Mumbai-Goa highway and addressed the media afterward at Ratnagiri.

The minister further informed that the Mumbai-Goa highway has been divided into 10 packages. He informed that land acquisition and environmental clearances for the Panvel-Indapur phase had delayed the work on the Mumbai-Goa National Highway. He further informed that now all these hurdles have been cleared and the environmental issue is being taken care of by removing the flyover in the Karnala sanctuary area.

The Minister added that the construction work in Goa of the Mumbai-Goa National Highway has been completed. He said that the Mumbai-Goa National Highway is a highway connecting major tourist destinations in Konkan. This will boost tourism development. Also, as there is a road connecting major industrial areas, hence industrial development will also get a



boost.

The minister also announced three new projects worth Rs 15 thousand crores. These include Kalamboli Junction project, Pagode Junction Chowk to Greenfield Highway project and Morbe - Karanjade highway connecting Delhi via JNPA. He said that the works of these projects will start soon.

Earlier on Thursday morning, the minister laid the foundation stone of three national highway projects at Palaspe village in Raigad district. These projects will boost economic dynamism at the two ports of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority and Dighi, while concretisation of Panvel to Kasu highway will speed up travel and save fuel.

Mr.Gadkari said that to avoid accidents, a proposal to install Bamboo Crash Barrier on the sides of Mumbai-Goa highway has been given to the National Highway Authority. Also,the minister informed that the state government has been asked to carry out wide plantations along the highway.

The minister said that signages as per international standards will be installed on the Mumbai-Goa National Highway. He said that this will help reduce the number of accidents and also make travel easier.