Rayagada: The National Highway (NH)-326 passing through undivided Koraput district will undergo a major expansion, sources informed Tuesday. It will soon be converted into a four-lane highway making life easy and comfortable for commuters. Sources said that work for conversion of NH-326 into a fourlane highway will start after the the Lok Sabha elections. It has been estimated that the project will be completed by mid-2029, sources informed.
A plan outlay of Rs 3,750 crore has been finalised for construction of the 336-km long highway which will become a major thoroughfare in the state. The project when completed will connect the state with National Highway-16 which passes through West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Officials pointed out that once vehicular traffic increases on the four-lane highway, Koraput district will also undergo economic development. Transportation of various cargo-laden vessels will also increase the state’s coffers, the officials said. They added that a separate road from NH-326 will connect it to the ‘Biju Expressway’. The four-lane highway will veer from this town via the bypass road at Amalabhata Square under this block.
Moreover, flyovers will also be constructed at various strategic points of the highway including one over the railway tracks that passes close to the Sai International Hotel located in this town Reports said that NH-326 is currently a two-lane highway. The Centre has decided to convert it into a four-lane highway. A detailed project report has been prepared in which the 205-km stretch from Berhampur to here and 131-km stretch from this town to Jeypore will be divided into two parts to facilitate the expansion of the highway. The detailed project report (DPR) talks about the construction of several bypasses at various places to avoid traffic jams and accidents on the highway as there are many densely-populated villages in Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada and Koraput districts. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has already applied for forest clearance to complete the project as quickly as possible, sources informed. They added that land acquisition for the project will start after the Lok Sabha elections.
