The Scale of the Slowdown
Recent data presented to Parliament reveals a stark picture: more than half of all ongoing national highway projects have missed their completion deadlines. Out of 1,191 active projects, 629 are currently delayed. This isn't a problem confined to one
region. Major states like Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh top the list with the highest number of delayed works. Even in smaller states such as Kerala and Nagaland, the vast majority of projects are behind schedule. These delays represent an enormous investment of public funds, with one report flagging that hundreds of stalled projects are worth a combined Rs 3.60 lakh crore. The issue is so pervasive that it has become a major focus for the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
The Land Acquisition Maze
Ask anyone involved in infrastructure, and they will point to one primary culprit: land acquisition. It is consistently cited as the single biggest bottleneck. Before a single kilometre of road can be paved, the government must acquire vast tracts of land, which often pass through a complex patchwork of privately-owned farms, commercial properties, and community lands. This process is fraught with challenges, including disputes over compensation amounts, inaccurate land records, resistance from local communities, and lengthy legal battles. A parliamentary panel report noted that 35 percent of all project delays were directly linked to land acquisition disputes. To streamline this, the government has introduced digital platforms like the BhoomiRashi portal, but acquiring encumbrance-free land remains a time-consuming and often contentious first step.
Navigating the Regulatory Jungle
Alongside land, securing statutory and environmental clearances is another major hurdle. Projects often require approvals from multiple government bodies, including the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), railway authorities for overbridges, and various state-level agencies. Delays in obtaining these clearances can halt progress for months or even years. For example, a parliamentary report found that 30 percent of stalled projects were linked to delays in getting approvals from railways. While the government has worked to reduce the average time for environmental clearances, industry bodies continue to push for faster, more predictable timelines, arguing that procedural delays increase project costs. The Supreme Court has also weighed in, reinforcing that prior environmental clearance is mandatory and cannot be granted after a project has already started.
Contractor and Financial Headaches
Once land is secured and clearances are in hand, the focus shifts to the contractors tasked with execution. Here, a different set of problems emerges. Poor performance by contractors is a frequently cited reason for delays. In response, the government has taken to penalising and blacklisting underperforming firms. However, contractors also face their own challenges, including financial constraints and budget overruns. The rising and fluctuating costs of essential raw materials like steel, cement, and bitumen can strain project budgets. Sometimes, companies engage in aggressive bidding, quoting prices far below government estimates to win contracts, leaving little to no cushion for unexpected costs or challenges. This can lead to financial difficulties mid-project, slowing down or even halting work.
External Shocks and Unforeseen Events
Finally, highway projects are not immune to external shocks. Geopolitical events, such as the conflict in West Asia, can disrupt global supply chains and cause the price of critical imported materials like bitumen to spike, leading to cost increases of 5-8 percent and further delays. Other issues like the shifting of utilities, removal of encroachments from the proposed right-of-way, and local law and order problems also contribute to time overruns. These factors, often categorised as 'force majeure' events, are unpredictable but can have a significant impact on construction timelines and budgets, demonstrating the complex web of variables that must be managed to get a highway from plan to pavement.
