Road transport ministry to seek Cabinet nod for townships, smart cities alongside highways: Gadkari

New Delhi: The Road Transport and Highways Ministry will seek the Cabinet's approval for allowing construction of smart cities, townships, logistic parks and industrial clusters along the national highways, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Friday.

Addressing a virtual event, Gadkari said his aim is to construct world-class highway networks and the road transport and highways ministry has chalked out a plan for monetising existing highways projects for infra capital generation.

"And now we have prepared a cabinet note for approval ....for making roadside townships, smart cities, logistic parks, industrial clusters," he said.

"We are making 400 roadside amenities," Gadkari added.

The minister also said that his ministry is planning to construct tunnels worth Rs 2.5 lakh crore.

Gadkari also said that use of steel and cement should be reduced in road construction without compromising on quality through innovation and research.

He said CNG, LNG and ethanol should be used for the road equipment machinery.

The minister emphasised on import substitution, cost effective, pollution free and indigenous methods and development of alternative fuel .

Gadkari said India with about 63 lakh kms of road network is the second largest road network in the world. The government is investing 1.4 trillion dollars i.e. Rs 111 lakh crores in infrastructure development through National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), he added.

The government has also increased year on year infrastructure capex by 34 per cent to Rs. 5.54 lakh crore this year, he said. Increased investment in infrastructure would help create employment during the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

The minister said his aim is to construct a 60,000 km world class national highway at the rate of 40 km per day.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday said he wants to make Auli, a hill station situated in Uttarakhand, an attraction for tourists across the world.

Addressing a virtual event, Gadkari also said he is planning to develop a landscape between the 18-km-stretch of Zojila tunnel in Ladakh and Z-Morh tunnel in Jammu & Kashmir like world-famous Davos in Switzerland.

"We want to develop Auli in Uttrakhand near Badrinath and Kedarnath as an attraction for tourists across the world," he said.

The small-yet-picture-perfect town of Auli is India's premier ski resort destination.

Originally developed as a paramilitary base, Auli's skiing slopes are popular among tourists and professionals alike. In winter, Auli hosts several snow adventure events.

Standing at around 2,800-metre height, and surrounded by acres of oak and coniferous forests, Auli offers panoramic views of some of India's highest peaks, including the second-highest in the country, Nanda Devi (7,816m).

Davos, a town in the Swiss Alps, is a popular ski resort and hosts the annual World Economic Forum meeting.

Zojila Pass is situated at an altitude of 11,578 feet on the Srinagar-Kargil-Leh National Highway and remains closed during winters due to heavy snowfall.