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Bharatmala Pariyojana: Transforming India’s Road Network

Explore how Bharatmala is reshaping India’s road infrastructure, economic corridors, expressways, progress updates, challenges, and future vision.

Pratik Kamble

25 Aug 2025 — 2 min read

Bharatmala Pariyojana: Transforming India’s Road Network

Introduction

Launched in 2017, Bharatmala Pariyojana is India's largest-ever highway infrastructure initiative, aiming to revolutionize road connectivity through economic corridors, expressways, and multimodal integration. It’s central to the future of India’s logistics, mobility, and regional development.

1. Scope & Objectives

Envisions building ~34,800 km of road network across 31 states and UTs, covering 550+ districts.
Targets expanding freight share on national highways from 40% to 70-80%, enhancing interconnectivity with ports, borders, and hinterlands.
Planned construction includes:
- 26,000 km of Economic Corridors
- 8,000 km of Interstate Corridors
- 7,500 km of Feeder Routes, while also improving Golden Quadrilateral and NS-EW routes

2. Funding & Timeline

Phase-I cost: ₹6.92 lakh crore, expanded later to ₹8.5-8.54 lakh crore.
Financing via road cess, govt budget, toll monetization, internal/external resources, and private investment.
As of Dec 2024:
- 26,425 km awarded
- 18,700-19,800 km constructed, ~55-57% progress.
Completion expected by 2027-28, delayed from initial 2022 target.

3. Infrastructure Highlights

Over 6,600 km of greenfield high-speed corridors planned, early construction yields ~4,600 km.
Key expressway corridors:
- Varanasi-Kolkata Expressway: 710 km, linkage across four states, to reduce travel by ~3-4 hours; be operational around 2026-27.
- Pune-Bengaluru Expressway: 700 km greenfield, cuts 95 km distance; completes around 2028.
- Amritsar-Jamnagar Expressway: 1,257 km corridor connecting industrial and port hubs; halves travel time down to 13 hours by late 2025.
- Raipur-Visakhapatnam Expressway: 464 km corridor slicing travel to 6-7 hours, linking east coast directly to central India.
Notable project milestone: Koraput tunnel in the Raipur-Visakhapatnam corridor (3.43 km, Odisha’s first three-lane tunnel) completed; second to be done by December 2025.

4. Progress & Concerns

Land acquisition, environmental clearances, and fund escalations remain key hurdles.
Expressways such as Delhi-Dehradun have shown quality issues post-rainfall, raising public concern over construction standards.
A coastal highway project in Odisha has been stalled due to tender cancellation and controversies, though revisions are underway.

5. Socio-Economic Impact

Expected to generate over 142 million man-days of employment, and 22 million permanent jobs through corridor development.
Linked to Multimodal Logistics Parks (35 proposed locations) to streamline freight handling.
Designed to boost connectivity in border, rural, and tribal regions, while advancing tourism and industrial growth.

6. Conclusion

Bharatmala Pariyojana is rapidly reshaping India’s road infrastructure, augmenting mobility, reducing logistics time, and fueling economic equity and growth. Despite challenges, the network of expressways, corridors, and smart routes promises a future where road connectivity reigns supreme.