National Highways Authority of India
Also called: NHAI · Topic: Transport and Communication in India · NCERT: Class 10, Ch 7 "Lifelines of National Economy"; Class 12, Ch 7 "Transport and Communication"
Meaning
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is the central body that builds, maintains and runs India's national highways. It has been working since 1995. National highways are only about 2% of India's road length but carry about 40% of its road traffic, so NHAI's work matters a great deal. NHAI ran the National Highways Development Project (NHDP), which built the Golden Quadrilateral.
Example
NHAI built the Golden Quadrilateral, 5,846 km of 4- and 6-lane highway linking Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. It was launched in 1999 and finished in 2012.
Don't confuse with
- Border Roads Organisation (BRO): builds strategic roads along the northern and north-eastern borders. NHAI builds and runs the national highway network.
- State Public Works Departments: state governments build state highways. NHAI only handles national highways.
Related concepts
- Grand Trunk Road
- Nagpur Plan
- Road network of India
- National Highways
- State Highways
- Rural roads
- Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana