Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary has sought early Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) clearance for four highway and expressway projects worth Rs49,751 crore, covering about 330 km across the state and its links with neighbouring regions.
Choudhary made the request during a meeting with Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi. The proposals are expected to be considered by the CCEA, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after approval by the Union government’s Public Private Partnership Appraisal Committee.
The projects include NH-727AA, comprising a two-lane bridge over the Gandak river and a bridge and approach road connecting Manuapul in Bettiah, Bihar, with Tiwaripatti in Sevarahi, Uttar Pradesh. The estimated cost of this project is Rs1,976.77 crore.
Another proposal covers six-lane elevated and service roads on the Saristabad-Didarganj and Anisabad-Didarganj sections, estimated to cost Rs8,455.86 crore. The work is proposed under the Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM), a public-private road development model in which construction and financing responsibilities are shared between the government and private concessionaire.
The largest proposal is the Patna-Purnia four-lane greenfield expressway, also planned under HAM, with an estimated cost of Rs31,987.11 crore. The fourth project is a six-lane greenfield highway on the Varanasi-Ranchi-Kolkata route between Konki village and Lerua village, estimated at Rs7,331.40 crore and also proposed under HAM.
The chief minister also requested early notification of the Bihar section of the Gorakhpur-Siliguri Expressway as a National Expressway. According to the report, the state government is assisting the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) with pre-construction work, while land acquisition under the 3A notification is at an advanced stage in the districts concerned. Choudhary said the expressway would require new bridges over rivers in north Bihar and alter the state’s transport network.
The meeting also covered the Raxaul-Haldia Expressway, for which land acquisition has begun after approval of a revised alignment. Choudhary described the corridor as important for trade with Nepal and for connecting Bihar directly to Haldia port, and sought early notification and approval.
He further urged faster four-laning of the Muzaffarpur-Barauni section of NH-122, for which NHAI has prepared a detailed project report. The state government has also submitted detailed project reports to the Centre for six National Highway projects covering 323 km and costing Rs13,015 crore. These include the Vikramshila bridge approach road and the Mashrakh-Chakia-Bhitthamod four-laning project.
The chief minister said 2,329 km of National Highways in Bihar had been handed over to the state road construction department for maintenance and development. The next formal milestones for the four major proposals are approval by the appraisal committee followed by consideration and clearance by the CCEA.
