As much as 119 km of coastal roads in the State have been approved by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) under the revised list to be upgraded as port connectivity roads under the Bharatmala Pariyojna Phase I.
The upgrade of 11 corridors, estimated at ₹1,500 crore, figures among the 60 port connectivity roads totalling 1,061 km in eight States approved on February 4 by the Ministry.
The State has received a communication from MoRTH and the sanctioned work is for the financial year 2019-2020, Principal Secretary, Public Works, G. Kamalvardhana Rao told The Hindu.Another 73.8 km of port connectivity roads that failed to make it to the list from the State will be included in the subsequent phases of the Centrally funded road and highways project, Mr. Rao said.
In all, upgrade of 192.8 km of coastal roads in the State at ₹2,745 crore was identified under the Bharatmala Pariyojana.
Original list
The original list of port connectivity road stretches circulated by the Ministry in 2017 has also been modified in consultation with the Ministry of Shipping and State governments.
The optimisation exercise has led to the substitution of 1,901 km by additional stretches in the Bharatmala Pariyojana Phase I.
Full cost
The State will have to fully bear the cost of land acquisition as per an understanding reached with MoRTH.
The right of way, an average six to eight metres now, will go up to 12 metres after the upgrade.The Ministry will prioritise the projects and those projects where the entire cost of land acquisition and utility shifting is borne by the State will be taken up first.
The State will have to provide all the requisite statutory clearances.