Access-controlled Expressways - Odisha kind of sidelined

[Chitta]

See the thread https://odishadev.odishasociety.org/thre...t-532.html . While the initial list at https://archive.pib.gov.in/documents/rli...102503.pdf and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharatmala seems positive for Odisha, in terms of ground development of access-controlled expressways, Odisha is no where. This is really alarming as in 5 years when all the various access-controlled expressways come up with very little in Odisha, manufacturing companies will hesitate to set shop in Odisha as transporting without access-controlled expressways will be slower in odisha.

In a perverse way the GQ passing through coastal Odisha seems to be working against Odisha in that the central government prefers access controlled expressways to be mostly greenfield as it is cheaper and faster than broadening existing national highways to access controlled expressways. The reasons it is expensive to broaden existing national highways to access controlled expressways are:

• acquiring additional land is expensive. (land adjacent to existing NH is expensive)
  
  
• since existing NH can not be closed, constructing additional lanes, interchanges etc. is time consuming.
  

Because of this most of the access-controlled expressways that are being constructed consists mostly of greenfield components. 



This is explained nicely in the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cckBW7Ob...pOnDriving 



Odisha needs to keep this in mind and propose and push some access-controlled expressways with mostly greenfield components. Following are some suggestions.

• Hyderabad - Koraput - Dhenakanal (close to Bhubaneswar outer ring road) - Baripada - Kolkata
  
  
• Bhubaneswar outer ring road 
  
  
• Sambalpur - Varanasi
  
  
• Paradeep - Ranchi
  

Following maps show the current status of Access-controlled Expressway construction in India.

From https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi...526921.cms





From  https://www.reddit.com/r/MapPorn/comment...and_under/

[Chitta]

From https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi...617128.cms

[Chitta]

From http://www.twenty22.in/2021/08/new-expre...ywada.html

[Chitta]

From https://www.news18.com/news/india/nhai-i...95237.html 




From https://indianexpress.com/article/explai...s-7634560/



From https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/new...s?from=mdr

[Chitta]

From https://edukemy.com/daily-current-affair...d-corridor 

[Chitta]

The only expressway involving Odisha that is making progress is the Riapur-Vizag expresway: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raipur%E2%...Expressway 

Earlier there was a proposal for East Coast Economic Corridor, but that seems to be in the backburner.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Coast...c_Corridor

[Chitta]

Email to CMO:

Dear Esteemed Chief Minister, Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary Commerce & Transport,

All across India access-controlled Expressways are coming up, and many of them are operational.
Following is a list of operational Expressways as of December 2022; none is in Odisha.
(Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expressways_of_India )

Among the access-controlled Expressways under construction Odisha features only as part of the Raipur-Vizag Expressway.

Following is from a 2020 article in Times of India at https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/23-expressways-new-highways-coming-up-in-next-5-years/articleshow/77526921.cms  about access-controlled Expressways coming up by 2025.



Two other components involving Odisha are listed under Bharatmala, but there has been hardly any progress on them.
These are Paradip-Sambalpur, and Sambalpur-Ranchi Economic corridors. When included, following is the map of 
access-controlled Expressways. (Note that the GQ through Odisha is not part of it.)



Following are key points why Odisha has blind-sided itself with respect to access-controlled Expressways.

1. Access-controlled Expressways are different from the expressways terminology that Odisha uses. Odisha built Biju Expressway. That is very useful. But Biju Expressway is not an access-controlled Expressway. Similarly, Odisha rightly pushed for Ranchi-Vijayawada corridor, and coastal highway; but they are not access-controlled Expressways. 

2. Access-controlled Expressways shorten the time to travel by almost half. For example, the Samrudhi expressway between Mumbai and Nagpur will reduce the travel time from 14-15 hrs to 8 hrs. See https://www.financialexpress.com/infrastructure/mumbai-nagpur-super-communication-expressway-route-length-maharashtra-samruddhi-mahamarg/1444512/

3. Having the Golden quadrilateral pass through Odisha coast covering the entire Odisha coastline has given us a false feeling. The Golden quadrilateral  segment that passes through Odisha coast is NOT an access-controlled Expressway and has a very low priority of being made an access-controlled Expressway. That is because acquiring land along this popular and well established route is super expensive and expanding them is time taking.

4. Thus the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways at the center has quietly favored greenfield expressways as it is easier to acquire land, and building them is faster.

5. There has been some talk about an  East Coast Economic Corridor, and Odisha economic corridor, but they seem to be on the backburner. But that is part of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry (https://dpiit.gov.in/sites/default/files/NICDC-BriefNote-14Decemmber2020.pdf ) and the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways is not really going by the DPIIT list. Mr. Gadkari and the country are in a hurry and they are building 
access-controlled Expressways where they can build quickly.

6. Access-controlled Expressways do not seem to be a big priority under Sagarmala either.

7. The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways at the center has been quiet about the difference between access-controlled Expressways and other roads; so states in the know have pushed for them and gotten approval for them while we in Odisha seem to be oblivious about it.

By not having access-controlled Expressways Odisha will fall behind drastically and will miss out on the global manufacturing shift from China to India. These companies will go to places that are near access-controlled Expressways to save time on transportation. Same would also happen with respect to domestic manufacturing companies. As it is, Odisha is not among the top manufacturing locations in India and with the lack of access-controlled Expressways Odisha will fall behind further.

This is an urgent matter, Kindly take action on this on a war footing. 

Following is my thoughts on what Odisha should urgently push (This is food for thought; local experts may come up with better alternatives):

1. Since the golden quadrilateral segment passing through Odisha seems to be not preferred for upgradation to an access-controlled expressway (because of cost and time), an alternative to that needs to be proposed. A possible alternative is to propose a greenfield 
Hyderabad-Koraput-Dhenkanal (touching Bhubaneswar ring road)-Baripada-Kolkata . As I said. Mr. Gadkari prefers greenfield access-controlled expressways, as they are faster and cheaper to build.
(If and when the golden quadrilateral segment passing through Odisha does become an access controlled expressway that would be a bonus.)

2. Push for access-controlled ring roads around Bhubaneswar and Sambalpur and the Paradip-Sambalpur and Sambalpur-Ranchi
access-controlled expressways as part of EC28 and EC 31. These have been mentioned as part of Bharatmala. See https://archive.pib.gov.in/documents/rlink/2017/oct/p2017102503.pdf 

3. A Nagpur-Raipur-Rourkela-Kolkata with a greenfield alignment.

I repeat, this is an urgent matter. Kindly take action on this on a war footing. 

sincerely,
Chitta Baral

[Chitta]

See the thread https://odishadev.odishasociety.org/thread-742.html on new developments in this front.