NEW DELHI, Dec 31:
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the construction of six-lane greenfield access-controlled Nashik-Solapur-Akkalkot corridor in Maharashtra with a total capital cost of Rs 19,142 crore.
The 374-km project will be constructed on BOT (Toll) mode, according to an official statement.
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This project will provide connectivity to important regional cities such as Nashik, Ahilyanagar, Solapur connecting to Kurnool, it said.
This infrastructure is a significant step to facilitate integrated transport infrastructure development under the PM Gatishakti National Master Plan principle, it added.
The greenfield corridor from Nashik to Akkalkot is proposed to be connected to the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway near Vadhawan port interchange, Agra-Mumbai corridor at Nashik at junction with NH-60 (Adegaon) and Samruddhi Mahamarg at Pangri (near Nashik).
The statement said the proposed corridor will provide through connectivity from west coast to east coast.
From the Chennai port end, 4-lane corridors are already in progress from Chennai to Hasapur (MH Border) via Thiruvallur, Renigunta, Kadappa, and Kurnool (700 km long).
The primary purpose of the proposed access-controlled six-lane greenfield project corridor is to improve travel efficiency and is expected to reduce travel time by 17 hours and reduce the travel distance by 201 km.
Nashik-Akkalkot (Solapur) connectivity will improve logistics efficiency for freight originating and terminating at major National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) nodes of Kopparthy and Orvakal.
The Union Cabinet also approved the widening and strengthening of NH-326 in Odisha, upgrading the existing two-lane stretch to a two-lane highway with paved shoulder from 68.600 km to 311.700 km under the EPC mode.
According to an official statement, the total capital cost for the project is Rs 1,526.21 crore, which includes a civil construction cost of Rs 966.79 crore.
The statement said the upgradation of NH-326 will make travel faster, safer, and more reliable, resulting in overall development of southern Odisha, particularly benefiting the districts of Gajapati, Rayagada, and Koraput.
Improved road connectivity will directly benefit local communities, industries, educational institutions, and tourism centres by enhancing access to markets, healthcare, and employment opportunities, thereby contributing to the region’s inclusive growth, it added.
The Government has declared the stretch “the highway starting from its junction with NH-59 near Aska, passing through Mohana, Raipanka, Amalabhata, Rayagada, Laxmipur and terminating at its junction with NH-30 near Chinturu in Odisha” as NH-326 vide Gazette Notification dated August 14 ,2012.
Meanwhile, the Government approved a major relief package for Vodafone Idea, freezing its outstanding dues and approving a five-year moratorium on payments, providing a critical lifeline to the debt-laden telecom operator.
The Union Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, agreed to freeze AGR dues of Vodafone-Idea Ltd (VIL) at Rs 87,695 crore, which the struggling company has to start paying from 2031-32 fiscal and clear by 2040-41, sources aware of the decision said.
AGR dues refer to payments owed by telecom companies to the Government based on Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR). It is the revenue on which telecom operators must pay license fees and spectrum usage charges. It is defined to include all revenues, even non-telecom income (like interest, rent, asset sales).
Besides these outstanding, the AGR dues for FY2017-18 and FY 2018-19, which were finalised based on the Supreme Court order of September 2020, will now have to be paid over 2025-26 to 2030-31 fiscal without any change, they said.
Vodafone Idea has been battling a prolonged financial crisis, driven by intense price competition, high debt, and massive AGR liabilities that arose from a change in the definition of AGR. The company has struggled with persistent losses, a shrinking subscriber base, and limited ability to invest in network expansion, even as rivals accelerated 4G and 5G rollouts.
Repeated rounds of government relief and equity conversion of dues have kept the company afloat, but its long-term viability continues to hinge on sustained policy support, fresh capital infusion, and a turnaround in operating performance.
Some had expected that the Cabinet would waive a part, if not all, of the AGR dues. But instead, it decided to give a moratorium, which would allow the company to recover.
The dues that have been frozen will be reassessed by a committee based on audit reports, sources said, adding the outcome shall be binding on both parties.
Sources said the decisions taken by the Cabinet were to protect the interests of the government, which now has a 49 per cent stake in VIL. It will also enable orderly payment of dues to the government, ensure competition in the sector and protect the interests of 20 crore consumers of the company. (PTI)
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