India Deploys Network Survey Vehicles To Inspect Over 20 Thousand Kilometres
India’s National Highways Authority (NHAI) is set to launch an extensive survey across 20,933 kilometres of national highways to identify structural defects, improve road safety, and maintain quality standards. The initiative, covering 23 states, marks a significant step in leveraging technology for highway management and user safety.
The exercise will employ specialised Network Survey Vehicles (NSVs), equipped with advanced instruments including high-resolution cameras, 3D laser imaging, GPS, and Inertial Measurement Units (IMU). These vehicles will scan highways for cracks, potholes, rutting, uneven surfaces, and other defects, ensuring real-time and accurate data collection without human intervention. Collected data will feed into the Road Asset Management System (RAMS), a centralised digital platform developed by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), enabling planning, budgeting, and life-cycle maintenance decisions for India’s highway network.
This move comes in response to concerns about poor road conditions contributing to accidents and fatalities, despite rapid expansion of the highway network. Over the past decade, India’s national highway network has grown by 60 per cent, from 91,287 km in 2014 to 146,195 km in 2025, with multi-lane highways more than doubling. Construction speeds have improved, and flagship projects under the Bharatmala Pariyojana are creating economic corridors and expressways.Yet, persistent challenges remain. Inadequate road design, insufficient signage, unfinished stretches, and unsafe construction zones continue to pose risks.
In 2022, over 9,000 fatalities were linked to ongoing construction activities, underscoring the need for systematic inspections and timely maintenance.NSVs will operate on all new and existing 2/4/6/8-lane highways, with follow-up surveys scheduled every six months. The surveys will cover five zones: North, West, Centre, South, and East, collectively scanning over 91,280 km of lane length. Each zone will be handled by separate contractors to maintain transparency and efficiency. Private firms have been invited to carry out the surveys, ensuring that 13 types of road defects, along with carriageway specifications, shoulders, topography, medians, and utilities, are documented for comprehensive highway profiling.
Officials emphasise that this initiative is not only about identifying defects but also about integrating smart maintenance practices and data-driven decision-making. By using technology to monitor and maintain highways, India aims to create safer, more sustainable, and user-friendly road infrastructure.The NHAI’s deployment of NSVs reflects a strategic blend of digital innovation and infrastructure management, paving the way for enhanced accountability, safer travel, and a stronger national highway network.
