{"id":28566,"date":"2026-08-29T17:24:22","date_gmt":"2026-08-29T11:54:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/?p=28566"},"modified":"2026-08-29T17:24:22","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T11:54:22","slug":"bharatmala-pariyojana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/bharatmala-pariyojana\/","title":{"rendered":"Bharatmala Pariyojana, Objective, Current Status, Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Bharatmala Pariyojana<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> is an umbrella programme of the Government of India aimed at transforming the country\u2019s National Highway network through <\/span><b>integrated, corridor-based and multi-modal connectivity planning<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. It was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) in October 2017, and it subsumed the residual works of the National Highways Development Project (NHDP).<\/span><\/p>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana seeks to improve freight and passenger movement, reduce logistics costs, decongest major corridors and strengthen connectivity with <\/span><b>economic centres, ports, border areas and remote regions<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Unlike the earlier piecemeal approach, Bharatmala adopts a <\/span><b>macro-level network planning approach to<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> optimise highway infrastructure. It is therefore an important component of India\u2019s broader logistics, infrastructure and economic development strategy.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana Overview<\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana was conceived to address gaps in India\u2019s highway network through coordinated development of economic corridors, expressways, feeder routes, border roads and port connectivity. It represents a shift from project-based highway development towards <\/span><b>integrated corridor planning<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Nature:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> An umbrella highway development programme subsuming the residual works of the National Highways Development Project (NHDP).<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Implementing Agencies:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> NHAI, National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and State Public Works Departments.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Core Approach:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Shift from a piecemeal, corridor-by-corridor approach to integrated, macro-level network planning for efficient freight and passenger movement.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Phase-I Target:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> 34,800 km of National Highways.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana Objectives<\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana aims to create an efficient, safe and economically integrated highway network by addressing critical <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/infrastructure\/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">infrastructure <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">and connectivity gaps.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Optimise Mobility:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala improves the efficiency of <\/span><b>freight and passenger movement<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> across the country.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Bridge Infrastructure Gaps:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala addresses critical highway gaps through <\/span><b>integrated interventions<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> rather than isolated projects.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Improve Economic Connectivity:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala connects major <\/span><b>production and consumption centres, economic corridors, ports and border areas<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Reduce Logistics Costs:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala lowers logistics costs as a share of <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/gross-domestic-product-gdp\/\" target=\"_blank\">Gross Domestic Product<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> (GDP) and strengthens India\u2019s position in global logistics performance.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Decongest Corridors:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala reduces congestion through <\/span><b>bypasses, lane expansion, elevated corridors and expressways<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Enhance Road Safety:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala improves road design, decongestion and accident-response infrastructure.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Promote Inclusive Connectivity:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala extends road connectivity to tribal, aspirational and <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/left-wing-extremism\/\" target=\"_blank\">Left Wing Extremism<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> (LWE)-affected districts.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana Features<\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Phase-I adopts an integrated approach to highway development by combining economic, strategic, port and last-mile connectivity with modern financing and execution mechanisms.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Economic Corridors:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala Pariyojana connects major production and consumption centres to facilitate efficient freight movement, such as the Delhi\u2013Mumbai Economic Corridor, Amritsar\u2013Jamnagar Corridor and Bengaluru\u2013Mangaluru Corridor.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Inter-Corridor &amp; Feeder Routes:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala Pariyojana provides first- and last-mile connectivity to economic corridors.<\/span>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Examples:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Solapur\u2013Aurangabad, Nashik\u2013Pune and Nagpur\u2013Narsinghpur inter-corridor routes in Maharashtra.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>National Corridor Efficiency Improvement:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala Pariyojana aims to decongest and improve existing major national corridors through lane expansion, bypasses and elevated corridors.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Border &amp; International Connectivity Roads:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala Pariyojana strengthens strategic border infrastructure and connectivity with neighbouring countries, such as components of international border and connectivity roads adjacent to Myanmar.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Coastal &amp; Port Connectivity Roads:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Improve road connectivity to ports and coastal areas, supporting trade and port-led development.<\/span>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Examples <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">include Karad\u2013Chiplun\u2013Jaigad Port and JNPT connectivity projects in Maharashtra.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Greenfield Expressways:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala Pariyojana develops <\/span><b>access-controlled, high-capacity expressways<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> on high-traffic corridors.<\/span>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Examples:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Delhi\u2013Mumbai Expressway, Ahmedabad\u2013Dholera Expressway and Bengaluru\u2013Chennai Expressway.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Balance National Highway Development Programme Works:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Bharatmala Pariyojana also aims to complete residual and incomplete projects inherited from the National Highways Development Project.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Multiple Funding Sources:<\/b> <b>Financing is supported through <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">budgetary allocation, market borrowings, the Central Road and Infrastructure Fund (CRIF) and asset monetisation<\/span><b>.<\/b><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Asset Monetisation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Existing highway assets under the Bharatmala Pariyojana are monetised through Toll-Operate-Transfer (TOT), Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) and Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)-based models to recycle capital.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Multiple Execution Models:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Projects are implemented through Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC), Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM), and <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/public-private-partnership\/\" target=\"_blank\">PPP<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> models such as Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) Toll models.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Integrated Planning:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Highway development under Bharatmala Pariyojana is increasingly aligned with PM GatiShakti to promote multimodal and integrated infrastructure planning.<\/span>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Also, road sector projects outlined in Phase-1 of the Bharatmala Pariyojana form a major financial and physical subset of the broader <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/national-infrastructure-pipeline\/\" target=\"_blank\">National Infrastructure Pipeline<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> (NIP) roadmap.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana Current Status<\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala has made substantial progress in highway development, with ongoing construction despite execution delays.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Overall Physical Progress:<\/b> <b>21,597 km<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> out of <\/span><b>26,425 km<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> awarded has been completed as of November 2025. Major progress has been recorded in Economic Corridors, Balance NHDP Works, Inter-Corridor Roads and Expressways.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Component-wise Progress:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Economic Corridors (6,896 km length completed\/8,737 km total length), Inter-Corridor Roads (2,397\/2,889 km), Expressways (1,994\/2,422 km) and Border &amp; International Connectivity Roads (1,466\/1,619 km) have recorded significant completion.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Financing Pattern:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Projects under Bharatmala Pariyojana have been implemented mainly through EPC (56%) and HAM (43%), while BOT-Toll accounts for only 1%, indicating limited private participation in traffic-risk-based projects.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Progress Trend:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Construction increased from 15,549 km in December 2023 to 19,826 km in February 2025 and 21,597 km by November 2025.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Flagship Projects:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Major completed projects under Bharatmala include the Eastern Peripheral Expressway, Delhi\u2013Meerut Expressway, the Atal Tunnel, the Chenani\u2013Nashri Tunnel, the Dhola\u2013Sadiya Bridge, the Bogibeel Bridge, the Sudarshan Setu, and the Z-Morh Tunnel.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Multimodal Logistics:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> 35 Multimodal Logistics Parks have been planned with an investment of around \u20b946,000 crore, supporting integration of road transport with other modes.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Wayside Amenities:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> More than 700 Wayside Amenities are planned to improve driver welfare, passenger convenience and road-user services along national highways.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Asset Monetisation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Around <\/span><b>\u20b91.52 lakh crore<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> has been mobilised through <\/span><b>TOT, InvIT and SPV-based asset monetisation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> till November 2025, helping recycle capital for new infrastructure.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana Challenges<\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Despite significant progress, CAG's audit of Phase I highlighted concerns relating to planning, financing, appraisal, fund management and execution.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Inflated Baseline:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> CAG observed that, after optimisation, 34,972 km (49.29%) of the 70,950 km NHAI highway length identified under the Bharatmala Pariyojana Phase-I (BPP-I) had already been developed or awarded under earlier schemes, raising concerns about exaggeration of Bharatmala's incremental achievement.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Legacy Bottlenecks:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Incomplete NHDP projects were absorbed into Bharatmala despite unresolved issues relating to land acquisition, right of way and forest clearances.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Skewed Financing Mix:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Against the approved financing mix of 30% EPC, 60% HAM and 10% BOT-Toll, actual execution has remained heavily tilted towards EPC and HAM, with BOT-Toll at only around 1% in November 2025.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Weak Prioritisation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> A significant portion of high-priority corridors remained unawarded, indicating gaps in systematic prioritisation and completion planning in the Bharatmala Pariyojana.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Rising Project Costs:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Average project cost reportedly increased from around \u20b914 crore\/km to \u20b924 crore\/km, raising concerns regarding cost escalation in the Bharatmala.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Fund Management Issues:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> CAG flagged instances where funds from other schemes were used while reporting Bharatmala achievements, affecting the clarity of scheme-wise financial reporting.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Weak Appraisal Discipline:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Several sampled projects reportedly proceeded to tendering without the prescribed appraisal by the Project Appraisal and Technical Scrutiny Committee.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Tendering Irregularities:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> The <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/comptroller-and-auditor-generalcag\/\" target=\"_blank\">Comptroller and Auditor General<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> (CAG) of India identified instances involving non-compliant bidders and inadequate\/inaccurate Detailed Project Reports (DPRs).<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Execution Delays:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> The programme, initially targeted for completion by 2022, remains incomplete; its deadline has subsequently been revised to 2027-28.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Bharatmala Pariyojana Way Forward<\/span><\/h2>\r\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The next phase should focus less on merely expanding the highway pipeline and more on <\/span><b>timely completion, financial sustainability, transparency and multimodal integration<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span><\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Rationalise Targets:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Exclude already-built or previously awarded stretches while assessing incremental Bharatmala achievements to ensure <\/span><b>transparent performance measurement<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Resolve Pre-Award Bottlenecks:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Complete <\/span><b>land acquisition, right-of-way and forest clearances<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> before awarding projects to minimise execution delays.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Promote BOT-Toll:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Increase the role of <\/span><b>BOT-Toll<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> wherever commercially viable to reduce dependence on public expenditure and NHAI borrowing.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Strengthen Asset Recycling:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Expand <\/span><b>TOT and InvIT-based monetisation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to recycle existing highway assets and finance new infrastructure.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Improve Project Prioritisation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Apply clear <\/span><b>CCEA-approved criteria<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to prioritise high-impact corridors with defined completion timelines.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Strengthen Appraisal:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Ensure mandatory technical and financial appraisal <\/span><b>before tendering<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, along with greater use of digital and transparent tender evaluation.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Improve Fund Transparency:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Maintain clear <\/span><b>scheme-wise fund mapping<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to prevent overlapping reporting and ensure accurate assessment of Bharatmala expenditure.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>Integrate with PM GatiShakti:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Align remaining Bharatmala projects with <\/span><b>PM GatiShakti's multimodal planning framework<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> to create integrated logistics networks rather than isolated road corridors.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bharatmala Pariyojana aims to transform the country\u2019s National Highway network through integrated, corridor-based and multi-modal connectivity planning. Read about its current status and challenges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":35,"featured_media":28744,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[38,30],"tags":[1933,40,1033],"class_list":["post-28566","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-upsc-notes","category-upsc-economy-notes","tag-bharatmala-pariyojana","tag-quest","tag-upsc-economy-notes"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28566","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/35"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28566"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28566\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28765,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28566\/revisions\/28765"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28744"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28566"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28566"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/upsc-exam\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}