Government has fixed the base construction period at 12 months for highway projects costing up to Rs 300 crore and 18 months for road construction projects costing Rs 301 to Rs 500 crore. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) on Monday said the construction period of national highway projects being built in plains and rugged areas will now be decided on the basis of their total civil cost. According to the ministry, a need was felt to change the old rules, hence new guidelines have been prepared on the basis of scientific study. Similarly, a period of 24 months has been fixed for projects ranging from Rs 501 to Rs 1,500 crore.
Complex projects will get additional time of 12 months
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a circular that the deadline may be extended if the project is complex such as involving multiple railway overbridges, long elevated roads or tunnels. The ministry said that an additional 12 months will be added to the scheduled construction time to take into account the difficult geographical conditions such as mountain cutting and slope stabilization work. The ministry statement said that these new deadlines will be applicable to all national highway projects starting after May 6, 2026.
New rule will be applicable on national highway projects
These rules will be applicable to NH projects in hilly/mountainous, steeply sloping areas of Himalayan/Northeastern states like Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir (except Jammu region), Ladakh, Sikkim, Darjeeling Hills, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Meghalaya. Previously, deadlines were stipulated in the standard EPC contract document. Under which it was necessary to complete the construction of any highway with length more than 50 km and any major bridge with length less than 200 meters in 24-30 months.
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