Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla along with Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari gave away National Highways Excellence Awards-2021 to the stakeholders and companies engaged in the highway construction and maintenance of road assets in New Delhi this evening. These Excellence Awards were constituted in 2018 with an aim to incentivize stakeholders in the highway construction and maintenance process and to create a spirit of healthy competitiveness amongst them.
Speaking on the occasion, the Lok Sabha Speaker said that because of frequent actions and extraordinary works by Road Transport and Highways Ministry in road and highway construction, people’s faith in the government has increased. He said, India will touch new heights in terms of road connectivity and road infrastructure in times to come.
In his address, Mr. Gadkari said, along with road infrastructure, there is a need to think about road safety and enhancing greenery on the roadsides. He expressed hope that Indian roads will be of American Standard by 2024 with the speed with which NHAI and his Ministry are working.
Our correspondent reports that around 122 nominations were received of which 30 final nominations were selected for these awards. National Highways Excellence Awards-2021 were given away in nine categories, including Excellence in Project Management, Excellence in Highway Safety, Excellence in Toll Management, Excellence in Operation and Maintenance, Innovation, Green Highways, Outstanding Work in Challenging Condition, Bridge Construction and Tunnel Construction. Along with these awards, special awards were also given away to field officers of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, National Highways Authority of India and National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation.
Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways Dr. V. K. Singh was also present at the event.
