Mumbai - Goa Highway Will Be Completed In One Year: Union Minister Nitin Gadkari

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has stated that the work on the Mumbai-Goa highway will be completed within the following year.

Gadkari announced this after inaugurating three national highway projects worth Rs 131 crore in Raigad district and conducting a ground-breaking ceremony for 42 km of roads worth Rs 430 crore on Sunday (3 April).

The work on the Mumbai-Goa highway is underway in eleven phases. The initial work was delayed due to land acquisition and obtaining permissions from the railways and the forest department.

“Mumbai-Goa is the heartbeat of this region. So we will definitely complete this work within a year. This highway now exists not only Mumbai-Goa, but it has been extended to Mangalore. Suppose government land becomes available on the Mumbai-Goa Highway. In that case, we will do our utmost to help set up a logistics park and truck terminal”, the Union Minister said on occasion.

He said that 24 companies are operating from this SEZ, and an investment of Rs 60,000 crore will come soon through this channel, employing 1.5 lakh youth in Konkan.

Emphasising the need to encourage the tourism sector around the first of Maharashtra, Gadkari assured to take up ropeway projects around the forts in the region.

“Maharashtra, especially the Konkan, has a rich heritage of forts. Therefore, we will fulfill all the proposals for ropeways in the state regarding forts. The Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has Austrian Duffelware technology available for ropeways, which can be used in the state,” he said.

He also suggested arranging light and sound shows at all the forts to attract more tourists.