PATNA: Road connectivity of Patna with twin heritage cities of Gaya
and Bodh Gaya and neighbouring Jharkhand is all set to get a boost as
work on upgradation of National Highway- 83 connecting Patna-Gaya-Dobhi,
stretching 127km, has resumed after a gap of nearly
one-and-a-half-years.
A first-of-its kind project in the state, the upgraded road is
proposed to be equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, including
sensors, closed-circuit television cameras and dedicated control rooms
to keep track on the movement of vehicles.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) had entered into an agreement with IL&FS in November 2014 for execution of the project. Though IL&FS started the work from Dobhi-end, it was stalled within a few months due to protests by locals near Gaya bypass and Jehanabad over land acquisition and compensation issues.
Senior NHAI officials, however, claimed that the land acquisition process has been expedited and work has commenced on around 40km of the NH. "Total 72km of land has been acquired and handed over to us by the local administration and process is on for acquisition of more land in Patna, Gaya and Jehanabad districts. The firm, IL&FS, was asked to resume mobilisation of resources in November and the actual work started in December," said a senior NHAI official on condition of anonymity.
Sources in NHAI said the total cost for this project is around Rs 1,900 crore, of which around Rs 1,350 crore has been contributed by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The remaining funds would be provided by the Centre. Sources claimed that around Rs 700 crore of the total cost would be spent towards pre-construction cost for meeting land acquisition and utility shifting expenses.
"There were some issues with regard to the rate of compensation for acquisition of land under the project. It has been finally decided that compensation would be paid at the rate of four times of the actual value of the land. The landowners were also demanding the same," the NHAI official said.
A first-of-its-kind aspect of the project would be 'advance traffic management system'. The four-lane road would have sensors fitted into the median, which would provide information about the speed of the vehicle and record the registration number of vehicles as well. There would also be three patrol cars, which would get data recorded by sensors on a continuous basis and reach any spot on the highway in case of emergency.
The upgraded highway would also be fitted with CCTVs, which would be placed at a reasonable height on poles. As many as five ambulances and three cranes would also be part of the hi-tech road.
ON TRACK
Name of the road: Patna-Punpun-Masaurhi-Jehanabad-Gaya-Dobhi (NH 83)
Length: 127.335km
Project cost: Rs 1,900 crore (approx)
