22,380.09 km of rural road construction completed in Himachal Pradesh

BJP State Media Incharge Karna Nanda said that the Central Government’s road scheme connecting every village of Himachal i.e. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana has proved to be a strong foundation of a big infrastructure for the entire Himachal Pradesh.

Today, Himachal Pradesh has got a huge benefit due to the thinking of the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Durga.

Nanda said that the Central Government has completed 22,380.09 km of rural road construction in Himachal Pradesh under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). This has proved to be a lifeline for Himachal Pradesh. Himachal has a total sanctioned road of 24,967.76 km under this scheme. Phase-IV of PMGSY aims to connect 25,000 villages across India by March 2029. A total of 8,38,611 km of roads have been sanctioned across the country, out of which 7,83,304 km have already been completed. States and Union Territories, including Himachal Pradesh, are now leveraging Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to identify and approve new road projects. Further, under this phase, special attention will be given to tribal-dominated settlements with 50% or more Scheduled Tribe (ST) population, especially in aspirational districts.

Nanda said that in the fourth phase of PMGSY, provision has been made to connect villages with a population of 100 to 250 in Himachal Pradesh with roads. In this, villages with a population of 100 in tribal areas are likely to get roads on the basis of the 2011 census, while in general areas, villages with a population of 250 will be connected with roads. It is worth mentioning that in Himachal, PWD has so far identified about 700 villages through different surveys. Another decision has been taken in the new guidelines of PMGSY and in this, it is being said to connect the areas which are isolated due to snowfall in the fourth phase of PMGSY.