Patna: The Bihar government has set an ambitious goal to enhance road connectivity, aiming to ensure that travel from any part of the state to the capital, Patna, takes no more than five hours. However, Road Construction Minister Vijay Kumar Sinha is pushing to reduce this travel time further to three and a half hours.
As part of this initiative, the state is focusing on constructing paved roads in every village and street, including along unpaved canal banks. By the conclusion of the fourth agricultural road map, all unpaved canal banks in Bihar will be converted into paved roads, with several sections already completed.
Since canals are directly connected to agricultural fields, paving the banks will significantly benefit farmers by improving transportation. This move will also facilitate local citizens and enable engineers and officials from the Water Resources Department to maintain canals more efficiently.
While the Rural Works Department has been assigned the responsibility for this project, it must obtain approval from the Water Resources Department before commencing construction.
In the initial phase, service paths along key canals are being paved, covering a total distance of 188 km at an estimated cost of ₹376 crore. The canals included in this phase are Tirhut Main Canal, Koriari Main Canal, Telhara Bhakha Canal, Uderasthan Left Main Canal, and Natoul Bhakha Canal.
Once the first phase is completed, other service paths will be developed in a phased manner, with separate approvals required for each year’s work. Additionally, the estimated cost is expected to increase by 8% annually due to rising expenses.
Bihar has 5,023 km of canals with a water discharge capacity exceeding 200 cusecs. Of this, 1,854 km already have paved service paths. Currently, 175 km of unpaved canal banks are being converted into paved roads. However, 2,994 km of service paths still remain unpaved and will be developed in the coming years.
For the financial year 2023-24, ₹15 crore has been allocated for the project. In 2024-25, the estimated expenditure is ₹1,000 crore, followed by ₹1,600 crore each for 2025-26 and 2026-27. The budget for 2027-28 is projected at ₹1,500 crore, while ₹1,400 crore is planned for 2028-29.
