Mumbai-Goa highway set to open next month: What do we know about NH-66?

Work on the much-awaited Mumbai-Goa Expressway is expected to finish next month. The NH-66 is expected to reduce travel time between the two cities by six hours. According to News18, Public Work Department’s minister named Ravindra Chavan said the work on the project would finish before Ganeshotsav in September. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde tweeted, “The PW is trying to take urgent measures regarding the work of Mumbai-Goa National Highway. The detailed project report work for the Mumbai-Sindhudurg route is in its final stage. The 18-hour journey through the Samruddhi Highway has come down to 8 to 10 hours. This is proving useful in terms of expanding industry opportunities for farmers and travelers. The government has prioritized the expansion of various such communication facilities, and the communication facilities will be expanded in this manner in Konkan too." But what do we know about the NH-66? Let’s take a closer look: Work to widen the Mumbai-Goa highway to four lines has been going on for more than a decade. According to News9, work on the 471-kilometer project kicked off way back in 2011. The expressway will begin at Panvel and wind through Mangaon, Pen, Poladpur, Mahad, Chiplun, Khed, Lanja, Ratnagiri, Sangameshwar, Sawantwadi, Kudal, Kankavli, Rajapur, Panaji, Canacona and Margao. It currently takes ten hours to travel between Mumbai and Goa.

The expressway is expected to reduce that time by around six hours.

Authorities say the project is aimed at providing commuters a safer route and boosting tourism, as per News9. However, according to Times Now, cracks have already begun appearing at some places from Panvel to Pen Taluka section. Though the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has filled in the gaps with concrete, some have expressed safety conscerns. Activist Rajeev Mishra told News18 the concrete slab layers, sans steel, will be unable to bear the load of vehicles. This will create potholes in the future, Mishra added. Chavan in 2022 said more than 1,500 people lost their lives in road accidents on Mumbai-Goa highway between 2012 and 2022/ Chavan gave a written reply during a discussion through a calling attention notice by Shiv Sena MLA Sunil Prabhu. “From 2012 to 2022, a total of 6,692 accidents took place on the Mumbai-Goa highway and 1,512 people lost their lives,” the minister said. Union minister Nitin Gadkari in March said the ongoing work on the national highway will be completed by December. Gadkari said the highway would  give a huge boost to development in Maharashtra’s Konkan region. “The Mumbai-Goa highway touches 66 tourism spots in Konkan. It will give development a big boost. It will also ensure quick transportation of fruits and other produce the region is famous for,” he said.

He blamed the contractors, who were given two stretches of the highway for construction in 2011, for the delay.

“However, all matters are resolved now and the highway, which also connects Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and Dighi port, will help in the progress of the country,” Gadkari said. He added that several works in the coastal Konkan region were held up due to issues like land acquisition, permissions, contractor problems. With inputs from agencies