AP plans to develop 8,268 km of state roads at Rs. 2,205 crs

Kakinada: The Andhra Pradesh government is taking up road works at an estimated cost of Rs. 2,205 crores in the state to develop 8,268 km of state highways and major district roads.

On 11 June, state roads and buildings (R&B) minister Dadisetti Ramalingeswara Rao said the government has taken a loan of Rs. 2,205 crores from the Bank of Baroda to develop roads in the state. So far, work on 2,756 km has been completed and about Rs. 700 crores paid to the contractors. Steps are being taken to complete the ongoing works by the end of June, he added. Bills worth Rs. 705 crores were paid to contractors and the state government is taking steps to complete road development works before the monsoon season starts, said the minister, adding that the roads were damaged due to negligence in the past.

The minister said a loan of Rs. 1,158 crores was given by NABARD under the NIDA scheme to restart 233 road projects (99 state highways, 93 major district roads, and 41 district roads) that were stopped during the previous TDP government's rule. Of these, 182 have already been completed and another 51 lines will be completed by the end of this month, the minister said.

The government sanctioned Rs. 105 crores in 2019-20, Rs. 237 crores in 2020-21, and Rs. 86 crores in 2021-22 to recarpet damaged roads and repair roads damaged by the floods. For 2019-20, Rs. 124 crores were paid to contractors and for 2020-21 Rs. 245 crores and Rs. 266 crores were paid to the contractors. Around 2,600 km of roads will be developed in the state in two phases with the assistance from New Development Bank (NDB), the minister said.

Apart from the loan of Rs. 4,480 crores from NDB, the state government is spending Rs. 1,920 crores. Work on 1,260 km of roads was undertaken in the first phase at a cost of Rs. 3,014 crores. All of these works are currently in various stages. "We have set a target of completing the initial phase by the end of next March. In the second phase, 1,268 km of roads will be developed with Rs. 3,386 crores. Tenders will be called soon for the widening of state highways," said the minister.