Cabinet Approves Construction Of 6- Lane Access controlled Greenfield Highway

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the development of a 6-lane, access-controlled Greenfield High-Speed National Highway in Maharashtra. Spanning 29.219 km, the highway will link JNPA Port (Pagote) to Chowk and will be implemented under the Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) model, with a total investment of Rs. 4,500.62 crore.

This project is a critical part of India's integrated infrastructure planning under the PM Gatishakti National Master Plan, which emphasizes improved connectivity to major and minor ports across the country.

“Currently, it takes 2-3 hours for vehicles to move from JNPA Port to the arterial Golden Quadrilateral (GQ) section of NH-48 and Mumbai – Pune Expressway due to heavy congestion in urban areas like Palaspe Phata, D-Point, Kalamboli junction, Panvel with traffic ~1.8 Lakh PCU/day. After the operationalization of Navi Mumbai airport in 2025, the need for direct connectivity is expected to increase further,” PIB said in an official statement.

The newly approved highway project aims to ease this congestion and improve logistical efficiency by directly linking the JNPA Port to the Mumbai-Pune Highway (NH-48). It will also connect to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and the Mumbai-Goa National Highway (NH-66).

One of the prominent features of the project is the inclusion of two tunnels through the Sahyadri hills, which will allow commercial vehicles to bypass the challenging ghat section in the hilly terrain. This will ensure smoother, faster movement of large container trucks and other freight vehicles, as per the PIB release.

“The new 6 lane green field project corridor will lead to better port connectivity help in safe and efficient freight movement. The project will open new avenues of growth, development and prosperity in developing regions in and around Mumbai and Pune,” PIB stated in its release.