NH 143 Upgradation Project Hits Land Acquisition Hurdle .

With National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) working on an alternative to Government source for funds and Sundargarh district administration struggling to wriggle out of land acquisition mess, the mega project for upgradation of National Highway (NH) 143 is back to square one after four years.

Four years after entering into an agreement, the NHAI concessionaire Gammon Infrastructure Projects Ltd backed out of the project earlier this year citing financial constraint and delay in land acquisition.

The project, on design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis, envisages to construct a second bridge parallel to the existing one over river Brahmani at Rourkela, four-laning of 88-km stretch from Birmitrapur to Rajamunda and two-laning of 37-km stretch till Barkote in Deogarh district.

NHAI sources have estimated 20 per cent cost escalation to the earlier estimate of `778 crores for the project. Well-placed sources in NHAI said after the DBFOT mode flopped, efforts are underway to go for the conventional mode of Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) which would have provision for total Government funding.

A senior NHAI official on condition of anonymity said the earlier Detailed Project Report (DPR) including fresh cost estimate is being worked out while the traffic volume survey has been completed. Shortly, a new EPC proposal would be submitted.

The fresh attempt is also likely to linger as the proposal, after approval of NHAI, would require green signal from the Union Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways. If things go on expected lines, work may resume in first quarter of 2015, the sources added.


THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS