Bhubaneswar: Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari will visit Odisha on Wednesday to launch projects worth Rs 5,982 crore.
During the proposed visit he will lay foundation stone for three National Highways projects of total length 132 km worth Rs 2,345 crore and inaugurate projects worth Rs 431 crore in Kamakhyanagar in Dhenkanal district and lay foundation and lay foundation for six port projects worth Rs 3,206 in Paraidp.
The NH projects for which foundation stone will be laid tomorrow include four laning of the 41.726 km Talcher-Kamakhyanagar section of NH 200/23 (New NH 53) to come up at a cost of Rs 795.18 crore, Rs 761.11 crore 51.1 km Kamakhyanagar-Duburi section of NH 200 (New NH 53) and Rs 789.23 crore 39.4 km Duburi-Chandikhole section of NH 200 (New NH 53).
The projects will have appropriate structures like three bypasses, one flyover, 19 Vehicular Underpasses, nine major and 39 minor bridges and 45 km of service road to reduce traffic congestion and ensure safety of road users.
These NH projects will ensure better connectivity of the mineral rich Angul and Dhenkanal districts of Odisha with the rest of the state.
At Paradip Gadkari will inaugurate a Multipurpose Clean Cargo Berth of capacity 50 lakh tons/year, built at a cost of Rs 431 crore. The Berth- (450m length x 30m wide x 16m draught) can take in Capesize vessels up to 125000 DWT. There is a railway line with full length siding (3.2km). The Container handling capacity will enable local industry to find global markets.
The Minister will also lay foundation stone for six projects at the port. These include LPG Terminal at South Oil Jetty worth Rs 690 Crore, having a capacity of 7.5 lakh tons/year – The project will be executed by IOCL primarily for import of LPG to cater to domestic requirements.
