NHAI all set to change face of NE

Guwahati, May 1 (UNI) A mini India has assembled on the side of the National Highway starting from Srirampur to Silchar, in a stretch of over 700 km, as the National Highway Authority of India(NHAI) has commenced the biggest ever protect of the North East promising to change its face forever.

The NHAI is constructing the East West corridor linking the communication starved North East India with Porbandar in Gujarat with a four lane highway where average speed of all vehicles would be more than 100 kilometre per hour.

The project is marching ahead despite teething problems as more than 4000 engineers, skilled and unskilled laboureres and suppliers have assembled from all across the country determined to change the transportation forever. The total project cost is a tightly guarded secret but it should be more than Rs 12000 crore.

The work has started in almost all the packages stretching from Srirampur to Silchar and it is expected to go full steam from October, once the monsoon is over with the completion target set on 2009.

Srirampur-Pathsala stretch project director Mr Raj Chakravarty of NHAI, informed that despite hiccups in logistical and nature front, this massive project has taken off.

''You can see the mobilisation and documentation work of the project throughout the stretch as very heavy mobilisation has started,'' he said. Under the project, the existing two lanes would be converted to four with modern technology specially considering the long monsoon spell which generally damage the road building technology.

The total Silchar to Porbandar stretch of the project is 3465 km of which around 731 km will be in Asom, which is scheduled to be completed by 2008 but actually it would be around 2009. The four-lane highway will go from Srirampur to Silchar via Rakhaldubi, Baihata Chariali, Guwahati Bypass, Nagaon, Doboka, Lumding, and Maibong through National 31,37,36 and 54.

The project, which has been billed as the biggest of independent India, involves huge land acquisition, besides requirement of shifting of utilities by different government and semi government agencies.

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