Raipur: Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has requested the Centre to expedite the work of under-construction national highways in the state, officials said on Wednesday.
In a letter to Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday, Baghel also urged to declare Ambikapur-Bhaisamuda-Wadrafnagar-Dhangaon-Bamhani- Renukoot (110 km) road and Raigarh-Dharamjaigarh (72 km) road in the state as national highways, a public relations department official here said.
"In the letter, the chief minister expressed concern over the slow progress of national highway projects in the state," he said.
The construction of NH-30 connecting Raipur to Dhamtari is being done through NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) and its work resumed after being shut for two years.
But the pace of work is still very slow and therefore, the concerned authority should be directed to speed up the construction, Baghel said.
Similarly, the construction of NH-216 (Raigarh- Sarangarh-Saraipali road) was started in March 2015, but it is still incomplete.
Its work is almost closed from October last year, he said.
Baghel also sought approval of the NHAI for upgrading and widening of NH-149B (Champa-Korba-Katghora Road) citing high traffic density on the route.
Mentioning other ongoing NH projects in the state, Baghel said that he expects the union minister to take prompt action to accelerate the pace of their work, the official said.