Nitin Gadkari emphasises on collaboration amongst all stake holders for qualitative reforms
Union Minister
for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari emphasized on collaboration
amongst all stake holders for qualitative reforms. Inaugurating the 2 day National
Conference 'MANTHAN - Idea to Action' he said, we should overcome differences
and not think in silos. He said all the stake holders should understand
each other’s issues and with mutual consent focus on planning futuristic
policies so that the country’s transport is run on the fuel made in India
only. The Minister emphasized on qualitative contribution and vision for
creating new things for making India the foremost developed country.
The Minister underscored the importance of an integrated
approach with multi-modal transportation being at the core if India has to
become a five trillion dollar economy. He said 90 per cent of passenger traffic
and 70 per cent of goods traffic used roads, and there is a need for an
integrated approach where waterways, railways and airports are interlinked, and
logistics parks would play a critical role. If the state governments provide
land, the Ministry of Road Transport will facilitate in construction of
logistics parks. He added that the construction cost has to reduce while the
quality of construction has to improve substantially.
An integrated approach is essential to reduce logistics
costs from 16 per cent to 10 per cent (China is at 10 per cent, Europe at 12
per cent). Giving the example of how bus-ports can be centres of growth, the
Minister said it is imperative to link different modes of transportation while
improving road infrastructure through the infusion of new technologies and
modern equipment and materials. Citing how 750 km in his constituency is free
of potholes, he said bitumen and cement topping are ways to ensure its
longevity. The Mumbai Municipal Corporation is working on fully cemented roads
with an investment of about Rs. 6,000 crores. The initial cost may be high, but
it will be maintenance-free for 25 years. He cited how the cost of the 14.2 km
Zoji La Tunnel has been reduced by nearly Rs. 5,000 crores through pre-cast
materials and modern tunnelling equipment.
Talking about a sustainable
approach, Gadkari said the Ministry, along with the Ministry of Environment and
Forests, has come up with a ‘Tree Bank’ project wherein the National Highways
Authority of India (NHAI) will be planting trees along the highways, thus
expanding the green coverage. The Ministry has bought over 80 lakh trees, and
this should help the environment with the trees absorbing carbon dioxide. As a
result, India’s
ranking in green coverage has already gone up.
Calling for collaboration between States and the Centre,
the Minister said only six states had signed the memorandum of understanding
(MoU) for the Rs. 16,000 crore remotely operated vehicles project. The States
need to take ownership as it will ultimately benefit them.
The Minister of State for Road Transport & Highways,
General VK Singh referring to the considerable progress made in the road
transport sector, said ‘it’s
not the end’.
National Highways had increased from 91,000 km in 2008 to 1,41,000 km, and the
pace of construction had improved from 12 km a day to 37 km now, thanks to
enhanced design capabilities, use of modern equipment etc. State Governments
have a huge stake in the development of the transport sector, and with their
cooperation, India can surpass developed countries.
The Karnataka Minister for Public Works Development, CC Patil
mentioned the steps the State government took in developing state highways and
also listed out the works undertaken by NHAI.
The Secretary (RT &H), Giridhar Aramane said the
Ministry had resolved to reach the best in road infrastructure across the
country by 2047 when India celebrates its centenary year. It would be based on
the government’s ‘Atmanirbhar’ initiative,
and ‘Manthan’ is
part of this consultation process.
In her welcome address, Alka Upadhyaya, Chairperson of
NHAI, said, ‘Manthan’s
objective is to generate new ideas and speed up the development of
infrastructure works across the country. ‘Manthan’ is a platform that will deliberate and
visualise the future of road transport. In addition, it will initiate
collaboration between the government and the industry.
On occasion, Nitin Gadkari announced the winners of 10
applicants of Hackathon, each of whom would get Rs. 10 lakhs each and support
for the development of apps that would transform the road transport sector.