Lok Sabha Question No. 2706 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-08-02
Subject: National Highway Projects Pending due to Forest Clearance
Ministry: ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS
Asked by: SEETARAM AJMEERA NAIK, NAGENDRA KUMAR PRADHAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2706

ANSWERED ON 2 ND  AUGUST, 2018

## NATIONAL HIGHWAY PROJECTS PENDING DUE TO FOREST CLEARANCE

## 2706. PROF. A.S.R. NAIK:

SHRI NAGENDRA KUMAR PRADHAN:

## Will the Minister of ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS सडक परिवहन औि िाजमार्ग मंत्री

be pleased to state:

- (a) whether some National Highway (NH) projects which are sanctioned/under construction and are facing problems of forest clearance thereby leading to non-completion and cost escalation of the projects;
- (b) if so, the details thereof including NH-53 (Sambalpur-Tileibani No. 1 project);
- (c) the steps taken by the Government to address the problem;
- (d) whether there is any coordination mechanism between the Ministries to sort out this issue prior to sanction of the projects to avoid delay; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS

## (SHRI MANSUKH L. MANDAVIYA)

(a) to (b) The details of the delayed/pending projects due to the forest clearance are given at Annexure-I.  Sambalpur to Talebani project has got the stage-I forest clearance on 24.05.2017.

(c) to (e) National  Highway  projects  are  delayed  mainly  due  to  land  acquisition, utility shifting, non-availability of soil/aggregate, poor performance of contractors, environment/forest/wildlife  clearances, ROB  &  RUB  issues  with  Railways, public agitation for additional facilities, arbitration/contractual disputes with contractors etc. In order to ensure timely completion of the projects, regular meetings are held with project developers, State Governments and  contractors. To  expedite  completion  of  these  projects  various  steps  are  also taken  which  include  streamlining  of  land  acquisition  &  environment  clearances,  premium  rescheduling, close coordination with other Ministries, revamping of dispute resolution mechanism, frequent reviews at various levels etc. Apart from this Committee of Infrastructure headed  by  Hon'ble  Minister  also  meets  regularly  in  order  to  resolve  various  issues  including Forest/Environment Clearance issues.

ANNEXURE REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (b)  OF  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  2706  FOR  ANSWER  ON  02.08.2018  ASKED  BY  PROF. A.S.R.  NAIK  AND  SHRI  NAGENDRA  KUMAR  PRADHAN  REGARDING  NATIONAL HIGHWAY PROJECTS PENDING DUE TO FOREST CLEARANCE.

Details of the Delayed/Pending projects due to forest clearance

| S No   | State/Scheme/Agency   |   Number of Delayed/Pending Projects |
|--------|-----------------------|--------------------------------------|
| 1      | Bihar                 |                                    1 |
| 2      | Chhattisgarh          |                                    1 |
| 3      | Gujarat               |                                    3 |
| 4      | Haryana               |                                    1 |
| 5      | Himachal Pradesh      |                                    2 |
| 6      | Jharkhand             |                                    4 |
| 7      | Kerala                |                                    3 |
| 8      | Odisha                |                                    3 |
| 9      | Punjab                |                                    1 |
| 10     | Rajasthan             |                                    1 |
| 11     | Uttar Pradesh         |                                    1 |
| 12     | Uttarakhand           |                                    4 |
| 13     | SARDP-NE (PWD)        |                                    9 |
| 14     | NHDP-IV A             |                                    2 |
| 15     | VRC                   |                                    1 |
| 16     | NHIIP/EAP             |                                    1 |
| 17     | NHAI                  |                                    9 |
|        | Total                 |                                   47 |

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