Topic -2
1 Contents
Roads in Ancient India (3500 BC)
Roads in Mughal period (15th Century)
British Period (17th & 18th Century)
Roads in 19th Century (1950 onwards)
Jayakar committee and the recommendations
Nagpur road conference / 1st 20 year Road Development Plan
2nd 20 year road development plan
National Transport Policy Committee (NTPC)
3rd 20 year road development plan
National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)
2 Types of Ancient Indian Roads
• Indus Valley Civilization (Harrapa and Mohenjedaro): Roads with brick drains on both sides. • Mauryan rule in the 4th century constructed Rajpath (high roads) Banikpaths (merchant roads). • Ashoka Regime: Road networks with horticulture and rest houses at 4.8 – 6.4km along the roads.
• Mughul Period Trunk roads between Northwest to Eastern part and also linking coastal and central part of India • British Period Trunk roads, bridges, PWD was formed, construction of Grand Trunk Road Roads in Ancient India
Excavations of Mohenjo-daro and Harappa
Mauryan’s laid down the rules
Emperor Ahoka - roads with horticulture
Roads in Mughal period
During this period, roads of India were greatly improved.
Some of the highways either built or maintained by Mughals received great appreciation from the foreign visitors who visited India during that periods.
Roads were built running from N-W to the Eastern areas through Gangetic Plains, linking also the coastal and central parts.
5 Roads in 19th Century
At the beginning of the British rule, the conditions of roads deteriorated.
The economic and political shifts caused damage to a great extent in maintenance of the road transportation.
The fall of Mughal empire led therefore to scant attention to the communication
Prior to the introduction of railways, a number of trunk roads were metalled and bridges were provided.
6 Roads in 19th Century
This was mainly done on the remains of old roads which existed, under the supervision of the British Military Engineers.
Infact these roads connected important military and business centres.
Military maintenance was not quite adequate and in 1865 Lord Dalhousie, formed the PWD in more or less the same from that exists today.
7 Roads in 19th Century
The construction of the Grand Trunk Road was undertaken by this new department.
Immediately with the development of railways, attention of the Govt. was shifted from road development except for providing feeder roads and the railways was gaining the privileges.
8 Jayakar committee and the Recommendations, 1927
In 1927, a committee was appointed to report on question of road development in India. The most important recommendations made by the committee are:
i. Road development should be made a national interest since the
provincial and local Govt. do not have financial and technical capacity
for road development.
ii. Levy extra tax on petrol from road users to create the road development fund. iii. To establish a semi-official ,technical institution to pool technical knowledge, sharing of ideas and to act as an advisory body.
iv. To create a national level institution to carry research , development
works and consultation.
9 Central road fund (CRF), 1929
The consumer of petrol were charged an extrta leavy of 2.64 paise per litre
20 % - Central Reserve – for meeting expenses on the administration of the road fund, road experiments and research on road and bridge projects of special interest.
80% - to be allotted by the central government to the various states based on actual petrol consumption or revenue collected
10 Central Road Fund , 1929
CRF Act , 2000
Distribution of 100% cess on petrol as follows: 57.5% for NH 30% for SH MORTH 12.5% for safety works on rail-Road crossing.
50% cess on diesel for Rural Road development
Indian Road Congress (IRC), 1934
To provide national forum for regular pooling of experience and ideas on matters related to construction and maintenance of highways.
To recommend standard specifications.
To provide a platform for expression of professional opinion on matters relating to roads and road transport.
12 Motor Vehicle Act, 1939
It was brought into effect by Govt. of India to regulate the road traffic in the form of
Traffic laws
Ordinaces &
Regulations
The three phases primarily covered are control of the driver, vehicle ownership and vehicle operation on roads and in traffic stream
13 Nagpur Road Conference, 1943
A conference of the Chief Engineers of all states and provinces was convened in 1943 by Govt. of India at Nagpur, an initiative of the IRC to finalise the 1st road development plan for the country as a whole.
In this 20 year road development plan (1943-63), popularly known as the Nagpur Road Plan, all roads were classified into 5 categories and a 20 year development programme for the period 1943-63 was finalised.
At the end of this plan the target road length aimed at was 16 km per 100 square km area of the country.
14 Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), 1950
A constituent of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
The institute is mainly engaged in applied research and offers technical advice to the state governments and industries on various problems concerning roads
15 National Highway Act, 1956
Main features:
The responsibility of development and maintenance of the National highways (NH) to be provisionally taken by the central government.
The central Govt. to be empowered to declare any other highway as NH or to omit any of the existing national highways from the list.
16 2nd 20 year Road Development Plan (1961-81)
Also known as Bombay road plan
Target road density doubled from 1st : 32km per 100 sq.km area.
Construction of 1600km of Expressways was also included in this plan.
17 Highway Research Board (HRB), 1973
Objectives IRC Highway Research Board are:
To ascertain the nature and extent of research required
To correlate research information from various organizations in India and abroad with a view to exchange publications and information on roads
To co-ordinate and conduct correlation services
To collect and disseminate results on research
To channelise consultative services
18 National Transport Policy Committee, 1978
Govt. of India appointed NTPC in the year 1978
To prepare a comprehensive national transport policy for the country for the next decade or so.
The NTPC report was made available in the year 1980 and many of the major recommendations of this report have been accepted by the Govt. of India.
Some of the recommendations & suggestions:
Inclusion of transport in the priority sector
Requirement of roads in rural, hilly and tribal areas in the next road dev. Plans
Strengthening of NH system
Increase in funds for the maintenance of roads & to connect all the villages with all weather low-cost roads within next 20 years
19 3rd 20 year Road Development Plan (1981-2001)
Also known as ‘Lucknow road plan’
Some of the important aspects
Improvement of transportation facilities in villages, towns and small cities,
conservation of energy,
preservation of environmental quality &
improvement in road safety
Target road density: 46km (1981) to 82 km (2001) per 100 sq.km area.
20 National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), 1995
Responsible to develop, maintain and operate the NH
Under the control of Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
National Highway Development Programme (NHDP):
Projects under NHDP:
N-S & E-W Corridor
Port connectivity
National Rural Development Agency (NRRDA):
Program under this agency: Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)
Aim is to connect villages with a population over 1000 persons through good all weather roads by 2003 (already achieved) and to connect villages with 500 population by 2007
21 Golden Quadrilateral
22 Length :- 5846 km Connecting Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai 23 N-S & E-W Corridor
24Length :-7 ,300 km Kashmir to Kanyakumari -4000 km (with a spur to Cochin) and Silchar to Porbandar- 3300 km. •Jayakar Committee 1927
•Central Road Fund 1929
•Indian Roads Congress (IRC) 1934
•Motor Vehicle Act 1939
•Nagpur Road Conference 1943
•Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) 1950
•National Highway Act 1956
•Second twenty year road plan 1961
•Highway Research Board 1973
•National Transport Policy committee (NTPC) 1978
•Third twenty year road plan 1981
•National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) 1995
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