(FE)
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) proposes to award 6,000-km highway projects in the current fiscal. If achieved, this would be the second-best for the authority ever, in terms of project awards. In 2017-18, NHAI had awarded 7,400 km highway projects.
The authority has also set its highest construction target ever for 2019-20. The authority, which had built 3,320 highways in 2018-19, hopes to construct 4,500 km (12.32km/day) in 2019-20, proposing to clock over 35% growth. A source in the authority said a majority of the projects would be awarded through the hybrid annuity model (HAM) in 2019-20, in which the government contributes 40% of the project cost in phases throughout the construction period. The source said though some banks are not still forthcoming to fund projects under HAM, 105 among 124 projects awarded thus far under the route have achieved financial closure.
