The
new joint project will cover 10,510 km stretch of rural roads in Madhya Pradesh that fall under the Chief Minister's Gram Sadak Yojana
programme.
The
Government of India, the Government of Madhya Pradesh and the World
Bank signed a 210 million dollar loan agreement for the Madhya
Pradesh Rural Connectivity Project.
The
project is expected to improve the durability, resilience, and safety
of the gravel-surfaced rural roads and enhance the capacity of the
state to manage its rural roads network.
The
new joint project will cover 10,510 km stretch of rural roads in
Madhya Pradesh that fall under the Chief Minister's Gram Sadak Yojana
(CMGSY) programme. Of this, 10,000 km will be upgraded from existing
gravel to bituminous surface roads, while 510 km of new roads will be
built to the same bituminous surface standard.
"Government
of India is making all efforts to ensure that communities
in the most remote areas across the country are connected through a
road network. All weather road connectivity is crucial for economic
growth, especially in the rural areas. The Madhya Pradesh
roads project will enhance rural road connectivity in the state
which will open up opportunities for economic development and access
to social services for beneficiary communities in the state and help
in reducing poverty," said Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary,
Department of Economic Affairs.
"This
project will leverage resources to support innovations in road
construction, improve road safety, and reduce carbon footprint in
the transport sector by mainstreaming climate resilient
technology in road design and construction," added Hisham Abdo,
Acting Country Director, World Bank India.
Gravel
surfaced roads are more prone to washouts than paved roads during
flood seasons. This project will undertake resilience measures such
as surface sealing of roads, embankment pitching, and balancing
culverts to prevent damages caused by extreme flood events.
The transport
sector is one of the most significant emitters of greenhouse
gases. Alternate sealing options for road construction like polymer
modified asphalt, asphalt blended with plastic waste, and multiple
surface treatment to be piloted on approximately 20 per cent of the
length will not only be more cost-effective but will also reduce the
carbon footprint of the transport sector.
This
project, on a pilot basis, will engage women self-help groups (SHG)
in the post-construction maintenance activity. This will involve
routine maintenance of off-carriageway parts of the road, while the
main carriageway maintenance will remain part of the original
contractor's contract. The SHG members will be trained through the
project, and their work will be directly supervised and managed by
the Madhya Pradesh Rural Road Development Authority (MPRRDA)
field offices. In fact, a direct maintenance contract will be
executed between the SHG group and MPRRDA for 3-5 years.
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