Venkaiah Naidu, Gadkari lay foundation stones for various NH projects and NW-4's Krishna river stretch

October 4, 2017: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu laid the foundation stones for several National Highways projects and a project for development of Muktyala to Vijayawada stretch of Krishna River (National Waterways – 4), along with Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari at a function in Vijaywada recently. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu was also present on the occasion.

Seven NH projects were dedicated to the nation and foundation stones were laid for six NH projects in Andhra Pradesh, with the total cost of all the projects being Rs 4,193 crore. Foundation stone for the Phase-I for development of Krishna River was also laid. In the first phase of the project, the stretch between Muktayala to Vijayawada will be developed for transportation. The total project cost is Rs 7,015 crore and the length of the waterway is 315 kilometre.

Speaking on the occasion, Gadkari said that the union government would spend more than Rs 1 lakh crore on improving national highways in Andhra Pradesh, which would give a boost to the development of the state. He said a six lane access controlled greenfield Amaravathi Expressway will be built to connect the new capital city Amaravathi with Anantapur and also provide connectivity to Kurnool and Kadapa. The project has been approved with a total length of 557 km and cost of about Rs 25,000 crore. He added that the Andhra Pradesh government is preparing the DPR and it is in the process of acquiring land.

Gadkari also said that the project for development of Muktayala to Vijayawada section of NW-4 will provide an efficient logistics solution to boost the economic growth of the region and facilitate the development of the capital city Amravati during its early development stage as substantial construction material is expected to be transported on this stretch.

The minister also said that under Sagaramala programme, several port-related projects would be taken up in the state. The capacity of the Visakhapatnam port would be expanded. Visakhapatnam-Chennai industrial corridor was another major project which would benefit the state enormously and it would be taken up expeditiously, he added.

Gadkari also gave assurance that the Polavaram irrigation project would be completed before the next general election in 2019 and the union government would render all necessary assistance to the state government for the purpose.