Projects worth Rs 50,000 cr being developed in Kerala: Gadkari

New Delhi: Highway projects worth Rs 50,000 crore are being developed in Kerala as part of the Mumbai-Kanyakumari economic corridor under Bharatmala Pariyojana, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Tuesday.

He was speaking at a virtual ceremony for the laying of foundation stones for seven highway projects worth Rs 11,571 crore for Kerala and inauguration of a 27-kilometre highway project from Kazhakoottam to Mukkola, built at a cost of Rs 1,121 crore.

The Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs minister said that in line with the Prime Minister's vision for a New India, development of world-class transport infrastructure has been prioritised through initiatives such as the Bharatmala Pariyojana, the country's largest ever infrastructure development programme.

In addition, there are plans to upgrade 119 kilometres of port connectivity roads under Bharatmala/ Sagarmala Scheme, he said. Flagship corridors such as Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, Delhi-Amritsar Katra Expressway, Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway are also being developed as part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said in a statement.

"Mumbai Kanyakumari Economic Corridor with a length of 1,760 kilometres is one such corridor being developed as a part of the Bharatmala Pariyojana," he said.

He noted that the corridor improving connectivity to the entire western coast of the country from Mumbai till Kanyakumari will greatly enable the economic prosperity of the region.

"As a part of the Mumbai Kanyakumari Economic Corridor, 23 projects with a length of 650 kilometres are being developed in the state of Kerala at an investment of Rs 50,000 crore," the minister said.