Stone laid for four-laning of Suryapet-Khammam stretch

Expansion on 59-km stretch of National Highway 365BB

Preliminary works on the four-laning of the Khammam-Suryapet stretch of NH 365BB at Thallampadu in Khammam district.

The foundation stone for the four-laning of the 59-km Suryapet-Khammam stretch of the National Highway 365BB was laid by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari through a remote from New Delhi on Monday raising hopes of speedy completion of the long awaited highway expansion project.

The highway project was approved at an estimated cost of ₹ 2,054 crore to widen the 59 km stretch of the NH 365BB to improve inter-State road connectivity and road safety besides giving a fillip to trade and commerce. Issues related to land acquisition in the initial phase last year and the coronavirus induced crisis from mid-March this year caused considerable delay in implementation of the highway project as planned earlier. Even before the foundation laying ceremony delayed by the pandemic, the land acquisition process has almost been completed and the preliminary works on certain stretches of the highway expansion project got underway.

According to sources, land to an extent of 281 acres of the total 284 acres of land required for the project in as many as eight villages of Khammam rural and Kusumanchi mandals has already been acquired and handed over to the executing agency by the district administration.

An amount of around ₹ 40 crore had already been disbursed towards compensation to the land owners under the land acquisition process and the remaining amount has been deposited with the competent authority for disbursal soon, sources added.

Sources in the National Highways Authority of India said the four-laning of the Khammam-Suryapet stretch is expected to be completed by September 2022.

Khammam MP Nama Nageswara Rao participated in the video conference organised by Mr Gadkari in connection with the laying of foundation stones of a slew of national highway development projects on Monday.

Mr Rao had earlier written a series of letters to the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways seeking speedy completion of the national highway development and widening works in the State particularly development of road network between Khammam and Rajahmundry to boost export of products from Telangana through the ports in Andhra Pradesh.