Has the Cabinet Greenlit a Rs 1,853 Crore Project for a 4-Lane Paramakudi-Ramanathapuram Highway in Tamil Nadu?

New Delhi, July 1 (NationPress) The Union Cabinet on Tuesday sanctioned the development of a 4-lane highway connecting Paramakudi and Ramanathapuram, extending over 46.7 km in Tamil Nadu, at an estimated capital outlay of Rs 1,853 crore.

At present, the links between Madurai, Paramakudi, Ramanathapuram, Mandapam, Rameshwaram, and Dhanushkodi rely heavily on the existing 2-lane National Highway 87 (NH-87) and associated State Highways, leading to considerable congestion, particularly in densely populated areas and vital towns along the route.

This initiative aims to upgrade the 46.7 km stretch of NH-87 from Paramakudi to Ramanathapuram into a 4-lane configuration. This enhancement will alleviate congestion, bolster safety, and meet the mobility demands of rapidly growing towns such as Paramakudi, Sathirakudi, Achundanvayal, and Ramanathapuram, as stated in the official announcement following the meeting.

The project’s alignment will integrate with 5 major National Highways (NH-38, NH-85, NH-36, NH-536, and NH-32) and 3 State Highways (SH-47, SH-29, SH-34), ensuring seamless connectivity to crucial economic, social, and logistics hubs across southern Tamil Nadu, the statement elaborated.

Moreover, the upgraded corridor will foster multi-modal integration by linking with two prominent railway stations (Madurai and Rameshwaram), one airport (Madurai), and two smaller ports (Pamban and Rameshwaram), facilitating quicker movement of goods and passengers throughout the region.

Once completed, the Paramakudi-Ramanathapuram section is expected to be instrumental in regional economic advancement, enhancing connectivity between significant religious and economic centres, promoting tourism to Rameshwaram and Dhanushkodi, and opening up new opportunities for trade and industrial growth. The project is projected to generate around 8.4 lakh person-days of direct employment and 10.45 lakh person-days of indirect employment, paving the way for new avenues of growth, development, and prosperity in adjacent areas, according to the statement.

This project will be executed under the Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM). Key features of this model include the selection of the project concessionaire through an open, transparent, and competitive bidding process.

A support of 40 percent of the Bid Project Cost will be disbursed to the concessionaire by the National Highway Authority in five equal tranches tied to project completion milestones.

The concessionaire is responsible for initially covering the remaining 60 percent of the project cost through a blend of equity and debt while constructing the highway.