Guv VK Singh discusses ropeway transport plan for Mizoram with officials
Aizawl: Mizoram governor gen VK Singh held a consultative meeting on Tuesday at Raj Bhavan with senior officials from the ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH), national highways logistics management limited (NHLML), and the urban development & poverty alleviation (UD&PA) department to explore the implementation of the national ropeways development programme — Parvatmala Pariyojana — in Mizoram.
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Stressing the urgency of alternative transport solutions to ease growing urban traffic congestion, the governor emphasised the need to expand development beyond the core of Aizawl, which faces increasing space constraints. He stressed that connectivity for remote and hilly areas must be a priority, noting that the Parvatmala project could provide a viable solution if executed efficiently through interdepartmental coordination.
MoRTH additional secretary Vinay Kumar, who led the central team, assured the governor that necessary measures would be taken to facilitate the rollout of a ropeway project in Mizoram. He emphasised the scheme's suitability for improving mobility in hilly terrain, noting that 90% of the project revenue could be reinvested for local development.
State UD&PA secretary Lalmalsawma Pachuau discussed the plans on the proposed ropeway corridors under the Aizawl sustainable urban transport project (ASUTP). He outlined a comprehensive mobility plan developed for the 280 sq km greater Aizawl area, which includes multiple urban transport initiatives such as ropeways, pedestrian infrastructure enhancements, truck terminals, and bus system improvements.
Other present at the meeting were secretary to the governor Ajit Roy, UD&PA director Jacob Lalawmpuia, NHLML vice president Prashant Jain, and other officials from the UD&PA department.
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Time of India
9 hours ago
- Time of India
Guv VK Singh discusses ropeway transport plan for Mizoram with officials
Aizawl: Mizoram governor gen VK Singh held a consultative meeting on Tuesday at Raj Bhavan with senior officials from the ministry of road transport and highways (MoRTH), national highways logistics management limited (NHLML), and the urban development & poverty alleviation (UD&PA) department to explore the implementation of the national ropeways development programme — Parvatmala Pariyojana — in Mizoram. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Stressing the urgency of alternative transport solutions to ease growing urban traffic congestion, the governor emphasised the need to expand development beyond the core of Aizawl, which faces increasing space constraints. He stressed that connectivity for remote and hilly areas must be a priority, noting that the Parvatmala project could provide a viable solution if executed efficiently through interdepartmental coordination. MoRTH additional secretary Vinay Kumar, who led the central team, assured the governor that necessary measures would be taken to facilitate the rollout of a ropeway project in Mizoram. He emphasised the scheme's suitability for improving mobility in hilly terrain, noting that 90% of the project revenue could be reinvested for local development. State UD&PA secretary Lalmalsawma Pachuau discussed the plans on the proposed ropeway corridors under the Aizawl sustainable urban transport project (ASUTP). He outlined a comprehensive mobility plan developed for the 280 sq km greater Aizawl area, which includes multiple urban transport initiatives such as ropeways, pedestrian infrastructure enhancements, truck terminals, and bus system improvements. Other present at the meeting were secretary to the governor Ajit Roy, UD&PA director Jacob Lalawmpuia, NHLML vice president Prashant Jain, and other officials from the UD&PA department.
Mint
a day ago
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Facing road construction quality issues, Centre takes away state PWD and state department's powers for bidding out NHs
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Also read: Nitin Pai: Train more civil engineers to solve our infrastructure crisis 'Also, the involvement of ROs in all legal contractual processes is expected to streamline the disputes adjudication process while avoiding the need for repetition," Banerjee said. 'Land acquisition being a state subject, the coordination between central and state government departments remains crucial to expedite the ROW and other associated approvals." However, Shailesh Agarwal, partner for risk consulting (infrastructure) at EY India sounded a cautionary note when he said that uniform documents don't necessarily mean smoother highways. 'Ultimately, true quality improvement depends on regular quality controls, digitalisation, and accountability at the ground level," he said. 'Due care must be taken to ensure that the new system doesn't become a fresh bottleneck." The disputes process With regard to contractual disputes and arbitration, it has been decided that state PWDs/RCDs would not pursue such matters independently without consultation with ROs. All replies, statements of defence, and written submissions intended for courts / arbitrations shall be vetted by the ROs and returned after scrutiny with comments or amendments before submission within a period of 15 days failing which the replies, statements or submissions may be deemed cleared. The ROs would also be free to engage legal experts from NHAl-empanelled law firms for advice and support. The highway building plan In FY26, MoRTH proposes to construct about 10,000 km of highways, per the outcome budget 2025-26. As highway construction in the country matures, the liberal growth in construction is expected to slow and the focus will shift towards highway maintenance and enduring quality of construction. Out of 146,195 km length of national highways (NH) network in the country, damages have been reported in about 1% of the stretch every year, according to data from MoRTH. The conditions of NHs are assessed from time to time by the MoRTH and its various executing agencies. Also read: Ajit Ranade: West Asia's upheaval intensifies India's challenges of geopolitics The maintenance works on NHs are accordingly taken up from time to time to keep the NHs in traffic-worthy condition. According to MoRTH, the ministry spent nearly ₹6,500 crore on highway repair and maintenance in FY24. A similar level of expenditure is also expected to be incurred in the current fiscal.
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