Twenty sections on the corridors are likely to be taken up in the second phase.

According to sources, NHAI has received over 80 proposals from consultants for preparing detailed projects reports (DPRs). Consultants would be selected on the basis of the qualification of their staff and experience of the consultancy company.

Cost would also be one of the criteria. On an average, consultants are paid at the rate of Rs 1.5 lakh for each kilometre.

NHAI plans to appoint two types of consultants. Twenty consultants will be appointed for each section. Besides, four consultants will be appointed for project coordination work.

Project coordinators would be required to ensure uniformity in all the projects.

NHAI allowed the consultants to bid for more than one section. The idea was to ensure that there were at least four to five proposals for one section.Project consultants would be expected to submit DPRs in five months. After this, the bidding process for civil contracts would begin. NHAI is hoping to award the contracts by August and construction works are over within two years.

Engineering, procurement and construction contracts for 20 sections on the North-South, connecting Kashmir and Kanyakumari and the East-West, connecting Silchar and Saurashtra, have already been awarded as part of the first phase.

The sections, for which contracts have been awarded, cover about 262 km and will be completed at an estimated cost of Rs 855 crore. These constitute mainly smaller stretches.

The total length of corridors is 7,300 km and another 775 km is likely to be taken up in the second phase.

Construction work on the two corridors has been spread over a period of 10 years. However, Union surface transport minister Rajnath Singh has asked the NHAI to complete the National Highway Development Programme (NHDP) within three to four years.

Besides the two corridors, NHDP also includes the Golden Quadrilateral linking the cities of Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai and Mumbai. NHAI has drawn up a 10-year schedule, ending 2009, for completion of NHDP.

Singh has said that greater involvement of the private sector would be sought through BOT route.

The minister has indicated that more projects are likely to come up for private sector investment. As per the present NHAI plans, Rs 5,000 crore worth projects will be implemented through the BOT route.

TN demands conversion of 1,000 km into NH
Madurai, Jan 3 The Tamil Nadu government would press for conversion of about 1000-km of state highways into national highway during the Indian Road Congress convention to be held here from Tuesday, state highway minister T Krishnan said here on Monday.

He told reporters that among the roads that the state government would press for conversion were: Dindigul-Batalagundu-Uthamapalayam-Kumuli-Kochi (176 km), Madurai-Thondi (108 km) and Cudddalore-Chittor via Panruti and Thiruvannamalai stretching to 220 km.

The mega project of concrete paving of the 27-km Arterialanna Salai from Fort St George in Chennai to Tammbaram would also be taken as soon as the Central government fund was sanctioned. The feasibility report had been already completed for the six-lane road.

-- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA