At the ETInfra Roads & Highways Summit panel, “Policy Framework – Enabling the Next Phase of Highway Development”, industry and policy leaders called for stronger lifecycle maintenance, Centre-state coordination, better project preparation, integrated land and logistics planning, and data-led decision-making.India’s next phase of highway development must focus not only on adding road capacity but on improving the performance, maintenance and economic integration of existing assets, industry and policy leaders said at the ETInfra Roads & Highways Summit.During the panel discussion, “Policy Framework – Enabling the Next Phase of Highway Development”, speakers highlighted lifecycle asset management, project readiness, land acquisition, logistics connectivity, private investment and stronger institutional coordination as key priorities.
Dr. Chalumuri Sekhar, Director, Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), said faster highway construction must be matched by better design, construction quality and scientific maintenance. He called for centralised systems integrating road-condition, traffic and accident data so authorities can identify deterioration, prioritise interventions and allocate maintenance budgets more effectively.Data collection, integration, analysis and decision-making” should form part of the same framework, Sekhar said, adding that AI and digital tools could strengthen evidence-based infrastructure planning.
Rajeev Yadav, Advisor Infrastructure to CM Haryana, said Centre-state coordination remains critical, particularly for land acquisition, compensation, utility shifting and local clearances.There should be a defined framework for how this coordination will act for project preparation, project execution and project maintenance,” Yadav said. He also argued that older corridors should be systematically upgraded rather than allowed to fall behind newly built highways.
G Narayanan, CEO, Athaang Infrastructure, said capital is available for operating roads and monetisation opportunities, but investors need better-prepared assets, clearer timelines and more reliable traffic and operational data. He also noted that greenfield and brownfield projects carry different risks and should not necessarily be approached through identical structures.
Ramneek Sehgal, Chairman & Managing Director, Ceigall India Limited, called for highway planning to be integrated more closely with land use and economic development around transport corridors. He argued that rising land values generated by new highways could be better incorporated into planning and monetisation strategies.
Karan Sethi, Vice President, TVS ILP, said roads must increasingly be planned as part of a multimodal logistics network. “It is not road versus railway. It should be roads, railways and ports,” he said.Sethi added that Tier-II and Tier-III growth will require better connections between national highways and interior logistics locations, while rising land costs are making warehousing development more challenging.
Gaurav Jain, President-Elect, NAREDCO Delhi, similarly highlighted the need to align transport infrastructure with land-development policy. Rapid increases in land values around announced corridors can affect the viability of organised housing, logistics and other developments, making earlier coordination between government agencies and private stakeholders essential.
The panel’s central message was that highway policy must now move from construction-led expansion towards performance-led infrastructure—where maintenance, project preparedness, connectivity, land planning and measurable economic outcomes determine the quality of the network.
