India's Highway Expansion Gets a Boost with Monetisation Plan

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has announced its intention to monetise several key stretches of National Highways by the financial year 2026-27. The initiative, part of the Centre's asset monetisation strategy, will utilize the Toll-Operate-Transfer (TOT) and Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) models to unlock capital for future infrastructure projects.

The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways confirmed that the monetisation plan includes 17 projects spanning 1,692.5 km. These projects are located across nine states, including Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Rajasthan, and are considered vital economic and logistics corridors with significant traffic and connectivity potential.

NHAI clarified that the list excludes assets scheduled to be monetised via the Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust (RIIT). The push for monetisation is designed to attract private investment, accelerate National Highway modernisation, and enhance the country's logistic capabilities. The authority is confident that these efforts will provide investors with efficient planning opportunities and bolster India's infrastructure growth trajectory.

(With inputs from agencies.)