KCR charts intensive road repair plan

The Telangana government will spend nearly Rs 10,000 crores over the next few years on improving the road network.

THE Telangana government will start repairing on a war footing over 14,000 km of neglected roads and highways in the state from the first week of December. The state’s road network, which is in urgent need of repair at many places, received a boost when Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao last week released Rs 1766.92 crore for repair and resurfacing of black top roads. The fund will be utilised for sprucing up 3,426 roads in 96 Assembly constituencies across nine districts, excluding Hyderabad.

The CM has told Road and Buildings and Panchayati Raj authorities that the repair and resurfacing of important roads and highways has to be completed by the end of May next year, before monsoon arrives. In a meeting with several MLAs at the Assembly Monday, the CM said that he was also sanctioning double-laning of 2,000 km of roads connecting 149 mandal headquarters to district headquarters. Some 1500 km of single-lanes would also be double-laned in the coming years. State highways and district roads leading to Hyderabad from all directions will be four-laned, he said. The Telangana government will spend nearly Rs 10,000 crores over the next few years on improving the road network, constructing expressways and four-laning roads.

“Over the next five years, over 4100 km of gravel road will be made into black top, and about 20000 km of rural dirt roads will be made into pucca roads. We are focusing on providing basic needs to citizens like good roads, sewerage systems etc. Towns like Warangal, Karimnagar, Gajwale, Khammam and Nizamabad will get ring roads to ease congestion,’’ the CM said. In Hyderabad, expressways connecting Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station and two other bus depots to highways are on the anvil.

The state government has sanctioned Rs 2,400 crores to the Roads and Buildings Department to repair 10,000 km of highways in the state.

Another Rs 1,445 crores has been cleared to construct bridges across Krishna and Godavari so that existing bridges are decongested.
An action plan for Panchayati Raj Engineering Department for 2014-15 and 2015-16 for improving rural roads with an outlay of Rs 5470 crores has also been prepared. Funds are also being cleared to make changes in alignments of accident-prone highways like the Hyderabad-Karimnagar-Ramagundam Rajiv Rahadhari which does not have underpasses or overbridges, leading to several mishaps.

Sreenivas Janyala

Sreenivas Janyala is a Deputy Associate Editor at The Indian Express, where he serves as one of the most authoritative voices on the socio-political and economic landscape of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. With a career spanning over two decades in mainstream journalism, he provides deep-dive analysis and frontline reporting on the intricate dynamics of South Indian governance. Expertise and Experience Regional Specialization: Based in Hyderabad, Sreenivas has spent more than 20 years documenting the evolution of the Telugu-speaking states. His reporting was foundational during the historic Telangana statehood movement and continues to track the post-bifurcation development of both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Key Coverage Beats: His extensive portfolio covers a vast spectrum of critical issues: High-Stakes Politics: Comprehensive tracking of regional powerhouses (BRS, TDP, YSRCP, and Congress), electoral shifts, and the political careers of figures like K. Chandrashekar Rao, Chandrababu Naidu, and Jagan Mohan Reddy. Internal Security & Conflict: Authoritative reporting on Left-Wing Extremism (LWE), the decline of the Maoist movement in former hotbeds, and intelligence-led investigations into regional security modules. Governance & Infrastructure: Detailed analysis of massive irrigation projects (like Kaleshwaram and Polavaram), capital city developments (Amaravati), and the implementation of state welfare schemes. Crisis & Health Reporting: Led the publication's ground-level coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic in South India and major industrial incidents, such as the Vizag gas leak. Analytical Depth: Beyond daily news, Sreenivas is known for his "Explained" pieces that demystify complex regional disputes, such as river water sharing and judicial allocations between the sister states. ... Read More