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The Union government has overhauled its highway bidding process to improve execution and prevent delays. Under new guidelines from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, all land, environmental, forest, and wildlife clearances must be secured before inviting project bids-replacing the earlier norm of 90% land acquisition. Land acquisition must begin 60 days after finalizing highway alignment, and 90% of the right-of-way must be awarded before a Letter of Award is issued. These reforms aim to streamline approvals, minimize contractual disputes, and curb cost overruns. The Centre plans to award 9,000 km of highways in FY26 under this new, more efficient framework.
The Union government has recently implemented significant reforms to its highway construction bidding process. These changes impact road development agencies across the nation, aiming to accelerate project timelines and enhance execution efficiency by synchronizing project milestones with crucial land and environmental approvals. Advertisement
The updated guidelines mandate that work on securing land, environment, forest, and wildlife clearances must commence upon approval of a highway alignment. All statutory clearances must be fully completed before bids are invited from developers. Previously, only 90% of the land had to be acquired to solicit bids.
A circular from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), issued to all highway development and awarding agencies, outlines specific timelines. These timelines must be adhered to for securing clearances even from entities like Indian Railways and the Inland Waterways Authority of India, and for finalizing certain project estimates before the bidding process begins.
A key mandate is that 90% of the right-of-way (RoW) length, which refers to the land required for building a highway, should be awarded before a formal letter of award is issued to a developer. Furthermore, the notification for land acquisition must be issued before bids are even received. Regarding land acquisition itself, the MoRTH circular stipulates that the process will now begin 60 days after a highway' s alignment is finalized.
The Centre plans to award about 9,000 kilometers of highways in the current fiscal year (FY26). This comprehensive pre-bid exercise is considered vital to prevent contractual disputes, as well as avoid potential time and cost overruns that have frequently affected such large-scale infrastructure projects.
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