The following is from pages 39-41 of The following is an excerpt from http://morth.nic.in/writereaddata/noticeimages/Ultimate_RFP4418252769.pdf.

Some of the information on this is available at:

• http://morth.nic.in/writereaddata/noticeimages/Corrigendum_I3643744755.pdf
• http://morth.nic.in/writereaddata/noticeimages/Clarifications%20on%20RFP3580070101.pdf
• http://morth.nic.in/writereaddata/noticeimages/Ultimate_RFP4418252769.pdf

The following is an excerpt from http://morth.nic.in/writereaddata/noticeimages/Ultimate_RFP4418252769.pdf.

The Government of India with the cooperation of State Government intends to improve the communication infrastructure in the back ward area affected by naxalites and bring the backward area to the mainstream by removing the development disparity. This road has been planned to combat extremist activities in the border districts of Orissa as well as social upliftment of tribal people. The road from Vijayawada enters in Orissa at Motu in Malkangiri in south Orissa and leaves the State near Tiring in Mayurbhanj District in the north. The proposed road passes through 12 backward districts of Orissa. This road traverses through different topography. The route virtually passing middle of the State longitudinally, has been chosen carefully after identifying the disturbed area. Construction of this road shall help to bring about radical changes in the life style of the tribal people of the State, who often are subjected to coercion by extremists, by bringing in improved economic activities and improved law and order situation.

Most of the roads stretches are deficient in lane width, crust, formation height, drainage, CD works etc. It is necessary to work out an improvement strategy depending on sound engineering practice whereby all the weak points of road is attended to. Therefore, it is decided to engage Domestic Consultants to carry out the detailed project preparation for the roads & bridges by updating / redoing the available engineering data and supplementing with further investigation and data. The proposed improvement works shall consist mainly in raising the formation level, widening to two-lane from the existing single-lane/ intermediate-lane width, pavement strengthening and improving the cross drainage works. The road alignment comprises of predominantly single lane State Roads and Below Standard single lane in rural roads and DL/IL in NH stretches. The average formation width also varies considerably from 5m in Rural roads to 8 to 10m in State roads and 10-12m in NHs.. The Right of way also varies from 10m in the rural roads to 15-20m in SH/DR to 30-45m in NH. Most of the road stretches do not have appropriate geometrics. Some of the stretches have also deficient formation height.

The road is having a total length of 1219 km consisting of NH, SH, District roads and Village roads. Government of Orissa from its own resources have already started preparation of DPR of about 163 km of roads. Leaving aside the NH portion of the alignment, which will be taken up subsequently, it is decided to take up preparation of Detailed Project Report along with bid documents for balance about 600 km of SH and other category of roads. For convenience of administration, this 600 km of road has been divided to ten packages; the details of stretches which are included in the scope of work are provided in the Annexure-I.

The State of Orissa experiences annual rainfall of about 1500 mm and the maximum temperature during the summer from April to June is about 45 degree Celsius and minimum during winter from November to January is about 7 degree Celsius. The alignment is away from coastal area and the closest to the sea location is Aska and Digapahandi which will be about 50km from Bay of Bengal. The alignment is passing through predominantly plain/rolling terrain and hilly terrain.

2. OBJECTIVES The objectives of this consultancy services would be to carry out, feasibility study, detailed engineering design and project preparation (including BOQ, Bid documents and preparation of quality control manual for supervision) for the specific package indicated in Annexure-I. All the roads shall be improved to two lane carriageway with or without paved shoulder depending on the composition of traffic.

Accordingly, the objectives of this consultancy package will include: The feasibility study shall inter alias include traffic surveys, analysis and growth projections, fixing broad contour of the project, working out widening, realignment, bypass options, working out pavement rehabilitation/reconstruction options, working out rehabilitation/reconstruction options for bridges and CD works, working out schemes for various improvement features like intersections, service roads, underpasses, bus bays etc, environmental and social screening of the project and determination of preliminary cost of the project and carrying out economic analysis. Detailed Engineering Design and Project Preparation shall inter alias include detailed highway design (alignment plan and profile), design of pavement, design of bridges and CD works, design of other improvement works and road furniture, environmental and social safeguard plans, detailed working drawings, detailed cost estimate, BOQ, Economic Analysis, and Bid Document Preparation.

New Indian Express reports on a response given in the assembly regrading the status of the Ranch-Vijaywada highway. Following are some excerpts:

Work on the Orissa part of the Visakhapatnam-Ranchi Highway would be started after the detailed project report (DPR) is cleared by the Centre, Works Minister AU Singhdeo informed the Assembly on Friday. … the Minister said that 1,219 km of the highway would pass through Orissa. The road would connect Motu, Malkangiri, Koraput, Aska, Boudh, Keonjhar and Tiring. Singhdeo said that 237 km of the road will be national highway, 106 km would be under the Prime Minister’s Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) and 215 km would be constructed with World Bank funding adding DPR is being prepared for 610 km. … the Minister said that 167 km of the road would pass through Malkangiri, 138 km through Koraput and 127 km through Rayagada districts respectively. It would pass through tribal and backward districts in which the Naxalites have spread their base. Tenders have been floated for 64.3 km long Malkangiri-Jeypore road. Besides, work has already been started for 80 km-long Phulbani-Bhanjanagar road with Rs 20 crore estimate. SMEC International Private Limited has been entrusted the survey work for by-pass to Koraput town.

Telegraph describes the route as follows:

Vijayawada- Kodar- Khammam- Motu- Malkangiri- Jeypore- Koraput- Rayagada- Digapahandi- Aska- Phulbani- Boudhi- Deogarh- Keonjhar- Tiring- Hata- Chaibasa- Chakradharpur- Khunti- Ranchi.

Anubhuti Bishnoi in Indian Express reports on the progress towards making a 2-lane Ranchi-Vijaywada highway zig-zagging through 1219 kms of Orissa and passing though most of its tribal districts, many of which are naxalite infested. The article has a nice map showing which towns the road will pass through in Orissa. Following are some excerpts from that article. (Thanks to Manoj Sahu in Africa for mentioning this article in Agami Orissa.)

At a recent meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways was asked to expedite finalisation of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Vijayawada-Ranchi corridor cutting through Orissa, and take it up on a priority basis. … Around 1,219 km of the 1,729-km corridor planned between Vijayawada and Ranchi will fall in Orissa, and the state government had requested that its state highways, district and rural roads be incorporated in the corridor. Now 235.8 km of national highway sections, 878 km of state high ways and 104.5 km of rural roads will be a part of the corridor. The road from Vijayawada enters Orissa at Motu in Malkangiri district and leaves at Tiring in Mayurbhanj district on the north. … While the Ministry may not call the stretch NH as yet, with the Prime Minister taking a keen interest, it is set to be developed as per national highway standards. What that means is that tribal areas of Koraput, Malkangiri, Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Kandhamal, Anugul, Sambalpur, Deograh, Keonjhar, Mayurbhanj and Boudh, currently insurgency hotbeds, may emerge out of the hinterlands. Confirming that the project had been put on the fast track, a senior Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways official said: “The DPR of the corridor is underway and should be ready in six-seven months.”

Note: As mentioned by Digambara a map of the route is at http://tathya.in/story.asp?sno=592. I removed the faulty map that Indian Express printed.

In recent years there has been a big jump in the number of kilometers of national highways in Orissa. Following is copied from my page "Roads and Highways infrastructure in Orissa."

Road network: Orissa Roads1; Orissa Roads2; India’s NH network; India’s golden quadrilateral; the part of the GQ/NH-5 that runs through Orissa.

• National Highways in Orissa and India; its growth in recent years:
  • NH 5: Junction with NH No.6 in Jharkhand near Baharagora-Baripada-Baleshwar-Bhadrakh-Cuttack- Bhubaneswar-Khordha-Chhatrapur-Brahmapur- upto Andhra Pradesh Border. (488 kms)
  • NH 5A: Junction with NH No.5 near Haridaspur-Paradip Port. (77 kms)
  • NH 6: From Chhattisgarh Border-Lobarchatti- Bargarh - Sambalpur-Deogarh-Barakot- Kendujhargarh -Jashipur-Bangriposi-upto Jharkhand Border (462 kms)
  • NH 23: From Jharkhand Border-Panposh-Raurkela- Rajamundra-Barakot- Pala Laharha-Talcher-Jn. with NH-42 (209 kms)
  • NH 42: Junction with NH No.6 near Sambalpur- Redhakhol-Anugul-Dhenkanal- Jn. with NH-5 near Cuttack. (261 kms)
  • NH 43: From Chhattisgarh Border- Dhanpunji- Borigma- Jaypur-Koraput-Sunki- Andhra Pradesh Border. (152 kms)
  • NH 60: From West Bengal Border- Jaleswar - Baleshwar (57 kms)
  • NH 75: From Jharkhand Border to junction with NH No.215 near Parsora (18 kms)
  • NH 200: From Chhattisgarh-Machida-Jharsuguda- Kochinda- Deogarh -Talcher-Kamakhyanagar-Sukinda- Chandhikhol (440 kms)
  • NH 201: Boriguma-Ampani-Bhawanipatna- Belgan- Balangir-Luisinga-Jogisuruda-Dunguripali-Bargarh (310 kms)
  • NH 203: Bhubaneshwar-Pipili-Puri-Konark (97 kms)
  • NH 203A: The highway starting from its junction with NH-203 at Puri, connecting Bramhagiri and terminating at Satpada (49 kms)
  • NH 215: Panikoli-Anandapur-Ghatgan- Kendujhargarh- Parsora-Koira-Rajamundra (348 kms)
  • NH 217: From Chhattisgarh Border-Nauparha-Khariar- Titlagarh-Belgan- Ramapur- Baligurha-Sorada-Asika- Brahmapur- Narendrapur- Gopalpur (438 kms)
  • NH 224: Khordha-Nayagarh-Dashapalla- Purunakatak-Bauda-Sonapur-Balangir (298 kms)
• Vijaywada-Ranchi highway (approved by planning commission as reported in May 2006), [July 06] [The Orissa government has been demanding a NH from Vijaywada to Ranchi which will pass through the Naxal infested areas. 1200 km of this 2000km will be in Orissa. CM talked to planning comission about it.]
• Ongoing National Highway work in Orissa
• Future plans for Orissa: [1:april-28-05]; [2:april-28-05].
• Various phases of NHDP: [1]; [2]; [3]
• Other highway plans:
  • 4 laning of Chandikhol-Paradip by February-end of 2007
  • 4 laning of Keonjhar-Panikoili, Duburi-Talcher, Cuttack-Paradeep and Duburi-Keonjhar Highways. [June17-05-Pragativadi]
• Aim-for-with-high-priority/parts-of-it-in-Orissa-govt- plan(page4)-already:
  • Connect NH 215 (perhaps at Jajpur Rd) to Jenapur to NH200 (where it meets Brahmani) with a highway as Jenapur is the location where the National waterway will cross the railway line and Jenapur is 7 kms from where a branch of the line goes to Daitari and Bansapani.
  • Designate AP-border-Koraput-Raygada-Padampur- Berhampur (in NH5) as a National highway. (This will bring Koraput and Raygada, thus a big part of KBK, closer to BBSR) — a slight revision of what is in the plan
  • Designate Anandpur (NH 215)-Bhadrak-Dhamara port as an NH. (This will bring Dhamara port closer to Jharkhand, thus helping industries in Jharkhand and Orissa.)
  • Jagatpur-Kendrapara-Chandbali-Dhamara — make it an NH (alternative route to Dhamara port)
  • Panikoili/Kuakhia-Jajpur-Aradi-Chandabali — make it an NH (alternative route to Dhamara port)
  • Panikoili-Jajpur-Kendrapara-NH5a-Paradeep — make it an NH (alternative to Paradeep port)
• Orissa State Road Transport Company (OSRTC)
• Wide city roads:
  • Four-laning of the Airport-Dhamana Chhaka road in Bhubaneswar: [1]
  • Other Bhubaneswar Road plans: [1], [2]
• Bhubaneswar area road plans:
  • Being pursued: BBSR-Barang-Khuntuni-NH42; alternate route to Bhubaneswar-Cuttack via Barang; Khurda-Cuttack bypass via Pitapalli; Bhubaneswar (Uttara chhack) to Paradeep highway (Uttara chhack map)
  • Should be pursued: Bhubaneswar-Khurda Rd station (already some Puri-Adi trains bypass Bhubaneswar. So Khurda Rd could be an alternative reliever station for Bhubaneswar. Then this road would be very important.); Patia station to Pahala in NH5 (this would be a third alternative to Bhubaneswar-Cuttack especially from the hot area of KIIT, Infocity, etc.)