“I am committed to bolster Jharkhand’s infrastructure. I assure the people of implementing Rs 2 lakh crore-worth national highway projects in the state,” he said, while addressing a public meeting here.
“We have completed Rs 40,000-crore national highway projects in the state. At present, we are implementing highway projects worth Rs 70,000 crore, while projects worth Rs 75,000 crore are in the pipeline,” Gadkari added.
He said the Rs 36,000-crore Varanasi-Ranchi-Kolkata greenfield corridor will be completed by March 2028, while the Rs 12,800-crore Ranchi-Varanasi economic corridor will be built by January 2028.
Besides, the Delhi-Kolkata Rs 31,700-crore six-lane corridor will be completed by June 2026, he said, adding the Ranchi-Patna four-lane economic corridor, being built at a cost of Rs 8,900 crore, will be completed by December 2029.
Also, the Rs 16,500-crore Raipur-Dhanbad four-lane economic corridor will be completed by January 2028, he added.
Gadkari said till elections, there should be politics but after the polls, there should be “development politics”, hinting at populist measures by Jharkhand’s JMM-led government.
He also urged the Jharkhand government to address bottlenecks pertaining to land acquisition, clearance from the forest department and other issues in the state.
“We will ensure better connectivity between Jharkhand and other states, including Bihar,” the minister said.
Comparing the water crisis in parts of Jharkhand with Maharashtra, Gadkari said there is a small mantra to change the scenario.
“We have changed the situation. NHAI built 1,000 ponds free of cost in Maharashtra. We utilised earth excavated from ponds in building roads and it also led to water conservation. I urge the Jharkhand government to issue a similar order for constructing ponds and we will do it free of cost,” he said.
A strong infrastructure here will boost employment for the local masses, he added.
Gadkari said the state, which had a national highway network of 2,600 km in 2014, now has 4,470-km network.
Nineteen aspirational districts of the state are linked with the national highway network now, he said.
In Garhwa, the minister inaugurated a 23-km four-lane highway from Shankha to Khajoori, built at a cost of Rs 1,130 crore.
He also laid the foundation stone of a Rs 1,330-crore project for four-laning of a 32-km stretch of NH 39 from the Chhattisgarh-Jharkhand inter-state boundary to Gumla.
Gadkari, who arrived in Ranchi in a special flight, went to Garhwa in a helicopter and addressed a public rally there.
He was scheduled to arrive in Ranchi from Garhwa on a helicopter, however it was diverted to Gayaji in Bihar due to inclement weather, an official said.
Meanwhile, a special aircraft was sent to Gayaji and Gadkari is scheduled to inaugurate Ranchi projects on his arrival, the official added.
In Ranchi, the minister is scheduled to inaugurate and lay the foundation stones of multiple national highway projects worth Rs 6,350 crore, including a Rs 560-crore elevated corridor in Jharkhand state capital.
Earlier, speaking to PTI, Gadkari said, “Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren informed me that he will not be able to attend today’s function as his father Shibu Soren is unwell and is undergoing treatment in Delhi.” Officials said Soren extended thanks to Gadkari for the invitation to participate in the event.
“It would have been my privilege to be present on this significant occasion. However, due to the ill health of Shri Shibu Soren ji, I am currently in Delhi attending to his medical care, and hence, will not be able to join the programme,” an official quoting Soren’s written communication to Gadkari said.
Shibu Soren (81) has been undergoing treatment at a private hospital in the national capital for the past several days.
President Droupadi Murmu and Jharkhand Governor Santosh Gangwar, among others, have called on him.
Shibu Soren has been the leader of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha for the past 38 years and is recognised as the party’s founding patron. PTI NAM ACD MNB
