Cabinet clears 4-lane highway passing through Kaziranga, Pg7.

Key Highlights:

• The Union Cabinet approved the construction of an 86-km four-lane highway from Kaliabor to Numaligarh on NH-715 in Assam.
• The project cost is ₹6,957 crore, with a construction period of three years.
• A 34-km elevated viaduct will be built within Kaziranga National Park to allow animal passage.
• The highway is part of the Guwahati-Dibrugarh Corridor along the Brahmaputra river.

Detailed Insights:

• The existing Kaliabor-Numaligarh section of NH-715 (old NH-37) is partially two-laned, passing through Kaziranga National Park and populated areas.
• The project includes widening the existing two-lane road to four lanes and constructing 21 km of greenfield bypasses around Jakhalabandha and Bokakhat.
• The design was developed in consultation with the Union Environment Ministry, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), and Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
• The project aims to improve connectivity between Guwahati, Kaziranga National Park, and Numaligarh, integrating with NH-127, NH-129, and SH-35, enhancing connectivity to upper Assam, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh.

Key Concepts Involved:

• EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) Mode: A type of project delivery method where a single contractor is responsible for all activities from design to construction.
• Greenfield Project: A project that lacks any constraints imposed by prior work, typically developed on previously unused land.
• Elevated Viaduct: An elevated roadway or bridge, often used to minimize ground-level disruption in environmentally sensitive areas.