Roads

India has one of the largest road networks in the world with an aggregate distance of 4.1 million kilometers (India 2012, p. 1079). Roads in India connect village to village and village to urban centres. Moreover, roads offer door-to-door service and their construction can be undertaken even in areas of difficult terrain and steep slopes. The movement of goods is safer through road transport. They help the farmers to move their perishable commodities (flowers, fruits, milk, and vegetables) to the urban markets. The role of roads in the economic development and regional planning cannot be underestimated.

The country’s road network consists of: (i) Expressways, (ii) National Highways, (iii) State Highways, (iv) Major District Roads, (v) Other District Roads, and

(vi) Village Panchayat Roads. The road network comprises 70,934 km of National Highways, 128,000 km of State Highways, 470,000 km of Major District Roads, and about 2,650,000 km of other District and Rural Roads.

Out of these, the National Highways and State Highways together account for about 195,000 kilometres length. Though, the National Highways—the construction and maintenance of which is the responsibility of the Central Government—has about 66,590 km of length and comprises only about 2 per cent of the total length of roads, they, however, carry over 40 per cent of the total

About 65 per cent of freight and 80 per cent of traffic is carried by the roads. The pressure on the road network is increasing day by day. The number of vehicles have been growing at a rapid pace of 10.50 per cent per annum over the last five years. The rapid expansion and strengthening of the road network, therefore, is imperative both to provide for present and future traffic, and for improved accessibility to the hinterland. In addition, road transport needs to be regulated for better energy efficiency, lesser pollution, and enhanced road-safety.

Border Roads Organisation (BRO) The Border Roads Organisation was established in 1960 for the development of roads of strategic importance in the northern and north-eastern borders of the country. The Border Roads Organisation has not only linked the border areas of the North and North-East with the rest of the country, but has also developed the road infrastructure in Bihar, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajathan, Andhra Pradesh, Andaaman and Nicobar, and Chhattisgarh. It has also constructed roads and air fields in Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Bhutan and Myanmar. So far it has constructed more than 32,000 km of roads and surfaced 40,500 km of roads. The Zojila-Kargil and Manali-Leh roads were completed in 1998. The Pathankot-Jammu-Srinagar National Highway is also maintained by the Border Roads Organisation.