India has always been a nation that has showcased its mettle in terms of infrastructure. In the latest development, India once again scripted history by recording the highest ever construction speed of National Highways in 2020-21 i.e. 36.5 km per day.
India managed to achieve this sensational feat despite coronavirus induced restrictions on the construction and logistics sectors.
The Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari stressed the fact that India created a world record by building a 2.5 km four-lane concrete road in 24 hours and 26 km single lane Bitumen road in 21 hours.
“To ensure quality control in these projects, construction is being carried out as per highest IRC standards and MoRTH Specifications. A quality control zone has been set up to update policy guidelines as well as examine and issue directions for system improvement on Quality,” Minister Nitin Gadkari said in a tweet.
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Three years ago, Asia’s second-largest bridge was constructed in North East India. Bogibeel Bridge is India’s longest rail-road bridge, linking the north and south banks of the Brahmaputra, falling in the eastern part of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
It is the second-largest bridge in Asia with three-lane roads on top including a double-line railway track below. Bogibeel is part of infrastructure projects approved and planned by India to enhance the logistics along the border in Arunachal Pradesh.
Bogibeel Bridge will cut down inter-state travel time- Arunachal Pradesh to Assam. It is believed that this passage will help the people of Arunachal Pradesh by saving their time on travelling to southern Assam.
At present, a train journey from Arunachal Pradesh to Assam’s Dibrugarh needed a 500 km detour through Guwahati. After the bridge is functional to full effect, the distance will be cut down by 100 km, which will save enough time.
India and China share around 4,000-km border and the connectivity that the Bogibeel bridge provides is also quite significant for the movement of troops to Arunachal Pradesh bordering China.
While the former prime minister HD Deve Gowda initially laid the foundation stone for the Bogibeel bridge in January 1997, the work began only in April 2002 when former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee inaugurated the construction.
The bridge was sanctioned at a whopping cost of Rs 3,230.02 crore. The cost of the Bogibeel Bridge was then revised to Rs 4,857 crores, primarily due to cost escalation and expansion in its length to nearly 5 km as against 4.31 km proposed earlier.