The Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways T R Baalu said the 3,443 km-long East-West Corridor, connecting Porbander in Gujarat to Silchar in Assam, is likely to be "substantially completed" by the end of 2009. The Minister was speaking at the Parliamentary Consultative Committee meet here on Tuesday.
The East-West corridor runs through the states of Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Listing out the hurdles which are affecting the progress of the project, Baalu said disbursement of compensation for land acquisition in Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh was a major cause for delay. Moreover before handing out permission to cut trees for the project, the Uttar Pradesh Government has asked the authorities to keep provision for a 10-metre-wide strip of land for afforestation along the corridor.
Baalu also admitted that the law and order problem in Assam is also affecting work in that state.
Giving out details on the progress of the corridor, the Minister said widening of road has already been completed in 765 km stretch of the corridor, while it is in progress in another 2,446 kms stretch.
Source: The Indian Express,12th Sep,2007
