New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved national highway projects worth more than ₹24,000 crore in Varanasi to ease congestion in the temple town. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also cleared two railway multi-tracking projects in Odisha and Jharkhand worth ₹3,907 crore.
The highway package includes a link corridor between NH-19 and the Varanasi Ring Road, to be developed under the hybrid annuity model at a total cost of ₹14,447.64 crore. The civil construction cost is estimated at ₹6,037.85 crore, while land acquisition will cost ₹541.11 crore.
The second project, also a link corridor, will connect NH-31 with the Varanasi Ring Road, to be built under HAM at a cost of ₹10,998.32 crore. Civil construction will cost ₹4,565.33 crore and land acquisition ₹934.91 crore.
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The road transport and highways ministry said the highway projects would provide seamless connectivity between the NHs and the Varanasi Ring Road.