India’s flagship highway development programme, Bharatmala Pariyojana, has made significant progress, with over 22,500 km of roads completed till 31 March 2026, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said in a PIB backgrounder released on Tuesday (9 June).
Approved in 2017, Bharatmala Pariyojana aims to develop 34,800 km of highways at an estimated cost of Rs 5.35 lakh crore.
The programme was designed to improve nationwide connectivity, strengthen freight movement and reduce logistics costs.
The project focuses on the development of economic corridors, inter-corridors, feeder routes, border roads, coastal roads and expressways.
These corridors are expected to support a major share of road-based freight traffic, along with the Golden Quadrilateral and the North-South and East-West corridors.
Under the programme, around 26,000 km of economic corridors, 8,000 km of inter-corridors and 7,500 km of feeder routes have been identified to improve logistics efficiency.
As part of this, 28 cities have been identified for ring roads, along with 125 choke points and 66 congestion points for improvement.
The initiative also seeks to improve connectivity in tribal, aspirational and Left Wing Extremism-affected districts, while reducing travel time between key economic centres across India.
“Under Bharatmala, 22,590 km of roads have been completed till 31st March 2026. Several landmark projects under the plan improved mobility across difficult terrains and strategic regions,” the ministry said in a PIB backgrounder released on Tuesday (9 June).
“Several landmark projects under the plan improved mobility across difficult terrains and strategic regions,” the ministry
