New Delhi, Dec 31 (UNI) In a major push to high-speed road infrastructure under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved the construction of a six-lane, access-controlled greenfield Nashik-Solapur-Akkalkot corridor in Maharashtra at a capital cost of Rs 19,142 crore.
The 374-km project will be developed on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) toll mode.
Announcing the decision, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw said the project would significantly enhance regional and national connectivity.
“This project will provide connectivity to important regional cities such as Nashik, Ahilyanagar and Solapur, further connecting to Kurnool, as indicated in the map,” Vaishnaw said at a press briefing after the Cabinet meeting.
He described the corridor as a critical element of integrated transport planning. “This infrastructure is a significant step to facilitate integrated transport infrastructure development under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan principle,” the minister said.
The proposed greenfield corridor from Nashik to Akkalkot will be linked to multiple major national highways and expressways. It will connect to the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway near the Vadhawan Port interchange, the Agra-Mumbai corridor at Nashik through NH-60 (Adegaon), and the Samruddhi Mahamarg at Pangri near Nashik.
The project is also expected to strengthen West Coast-East Coast connectivity. On the eastern side, four-lane corridors are already under development from Chennai port to Hasapur on the Maharashtra border, covering about 700 km via Thiruvallur, Renigunta, Kadappa and Kurnool.
Once completed, the Nashik-Akkalkot corridor will plug into this network, creating a continuous high-speed freight and passenger movement spine.
The primary objective of the six-lane access-controlled corridor is to improve travel efficiency and logistics performance. The project is expected to reduce travel time by nearly 17 hours and shorten the travel distance by 201 km.
Designed for uninterrupted movement, the corridor will support average vehicular speeds of 60 kmph with a design speed of 100 kmph. This will bring down overall travel time to around 17 hours, a reduction of about 45% from the current 31 hours.
The corridor is expected to significantly improve logistics efficiency, particularly for freight originating from and destined to key National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) nodes such as Kopparthy and Orvakal.
The Nashik-Talegaon Dighe stretch will also address the long-pending requirement of a Pune–Nashik Expressway, identified by NICDC as part of a new expressway project being taken up by the Maharashtra government.
Officials said the high-speed corridor would improve safety, reduce congestion and lower vehicle operating costs, while providing seamless connectivity for both passenger and freight traffic.
The project is projected to generate substantial employment, with about 251.06 lakh man-days of direct employment and 313.83 lakh man-days of indirect employment during construction. Additional jobs are expected to be created through increased economic activity along the corridor.
The minister said the project would strengthen basic infrastructure and spur overall economic development in Nashik, Ahilyanagar, Dharashiv and Solapur districts, positioning the region as a key growth hub in Maharashtra’s expanding transport and industrial network.
