Nabarangpur tops in land acquisition for Bharatmala project

Nabarangpur: The construction of the six-lane Raipur-Vishakhapatnam National Highway at an estimated cost of `20,000 crore is going on speedily. It will take only six hours from Raipur to Visakhapatnam if the vehicle runs on the road at a speed of 100 kmph. Autos and bikes will not be allowed in the road.

The road so-called the Economic Corridor of the Government of India under the Bharatmala Yojana, is in full swing. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2024, said National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) project director Raju Zerong.

When contacted, Nabarangpur Collector Kamal Lochan Mishra said, 124 km of the six-lane road will be in Nabarangpur district. Cent percent land acquisition work has been completed in the district. So far as land acquisition is concerned, Nabarangpur tops in the country as it is the only district to complete land acquisition work on time. He said the highway will pass through five blocks in the district---Raighar, Umerkote, Dabugaon, Papadahandi and Nabarangpur block. It will be connected to six places in the district. They are Koskonga and Biripur (Raighar block), Adhikariguda (Umerkote), Chhelibeda (Dabugaon), Kharkhi (Papadahandi) and Dashpur (Nabarangpur), where the terminals will be constructed.

Misra said 188 box bridges and 55 piped culverts will be constructed in the district for the 124 km road. The highway on government land will be made 60 m wide and 45 m wide in forest land. Camps have been set up in various parts of the district to speed up the work. The estimated cost of the project in the district is Rs 3,159 crore.