NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways  has put plans in place to maintain the pace of highway development and construct 12,500 km of highways in the current financial year, a senior official on Wednesday said. Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary, Road Transport and Highways, said Rs 10,000 crore is planned to be raised through Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) mode in FY 2023-24.

"Ministry of Road Transport and Highwayhas put plans in place to maintain the pace of highway development, with a strong pipeline of projects across the country. "For 2023-24, the ministry has taken up targets to award 12,000 km and construct 12,500 km of highways in the country," she told PTI. The road transport and highways ministry is yet to declare data on the construction and award of highway projects for 2022-23. The ministry has constructed 10,237 kilometres in 2019- 20, 13,327 kilometres in 2020-21 and 10,457 kilometres in 2021-22.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) are primarily responsible for the construction of national highways and expressways in India. Asked whether the government would raise more money via the InviT route, Upadhyaya said Ministry of Road Transport and Highwayshas leveraged various innovative ways of funding its infrastructure projects by involving the private sector in highway construction.

"Till February 28, 2023, Rs 10,200 crore has been raised through InvIT in two phases, for a total length of 635 km, while InvIT III is planned to be awarded in April 2023 for a total of Rs 10,000 crore. "Further, Rs 10,000 crore is planned to be raised through InvIT mode in FY 2023-24," she said.

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