Govt to build 50,000 new rural roads under PMGSY

The government is targeting to construct 50,000 new rural roads at the rate of 133 km a day and with an investment of Rs 33,000 crore, it will also use technology to identify roads which can be developed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has said that the pace of construction of rural roads was 100 km per day between 2014-2016 compared to an average of 73 km during 2007-14 and now the government is planning to increase the pace to 133 km/day.

The minister further said that the Centre has launched a mobile app ‘Meri Sadak’ in which a person can lodge a complaint for roads being developed under the PMGSY and it would respond to the complaint within 7 days. He said Centre gives funds to the states under the scheme which in turn transfers to respective districts and added that the Centre releases the fund without any delay as and when request for funds is received from the state.

He further said that the government has created a robust monitoring mechanism to look into the progress of rural road construction under the Yojana, he added that four states-Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Karnataka-have utilised the funds in the first phase of PMGSY and the Rural Development Ministry will act and money would be recovered from the states which are found lacking in implementation. PMGSY was introduced in the year 2000 by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and roads have been constructed to connect villages with roads at a fast pace, which has ushered in progress.