We have seen the Guiness Book of World Records for many things. Now, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has achieved a world record in building a highway super quickly. NHAI achieved this feat on Tuesday, 7th June 2022, when it created 75 Km of national highway within 5 days, or to be precise 105 hours and 33 minutes.
A total of 720 workers from two NHAI’s private consultant firms Raj Path Infracon Pvt. Ltd. and Jagdish Kadam, both Indian companies, have made the world record possible. The 75-Km highway stretch is a part of the under construction Amravati-Akola Highway. Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, declared on Tuesday, The total length of the 75 kilometres of single lane continuous bituminous concrete road is equivalent to 37.5 kilometres of two-lane paved shoulder road. The work started on June 3, at 7:27 am and was completed on June 7, at 5 pm.
The previous Guinness World Record for the longest continuously laid bituminous was for building 25.275 kilometres of road that was achieved in Doha, Qatar in February 2019 and that task was completed in 10 days. The new record surpassed the previous one by a long margin. The Amravati to Akola section is a part of the under construction NH53, which will provide vital east-west connectivity in the country, connecting important cities of Kolkata, Raipur, Nagpur and Surat.
The latest record will just not stand as a record, and will pave the way for future generations to set their goals to develop the country. This is certainly a proud moment for India in its 75th year of Independence. Still, NHAI needs to keep up the good work going, and not let the progress fall to ruins. We hope that the NHAI and other private and public consultants will make such fast and quality progress in the years to come.
Written by – Himadri Paul