New Delhi: Delays in construction of some national highways have been mainly due to land acquisition, environment and contractual issues, Parliament was informed on Thursday.
"Some National Highway projects under various phases of National Highways Development Projects (NHDP) have been delayed mainly due to land acquisition, poor performance of contractors and related arbitration, contractual disputes, environment clearance etc," Minister for Road Transport and Highways Pon Radhakrishnan said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
To expedite completion of these projects various steps have been taken which include streamlining of land acquisition, environment clearances, exit for equity investors, premium re-schedulement, securitization of road sector loans, revamping of dispute resolution mechanism among other steps, the minister said.
NHAI has decided not to award projects till all pre-construction approvals are in-place for the project to avoid post bid delays and litigations. Meanwhile, on the subject of policing on National Highways, the minister said, "Policing on public places including National Highways is a state subject. The state government is presently registering, investigating and prosecuting offences under various laws, including the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.
The draft Road Transport and Safety Bill, 2015 proposes enforcement of traffic regulation, reduce road crashes, make national highways safer for road users, the minister said.
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