SHILLONG: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday announced a massive infrastructure package of ₹50,000 crore for national highway projects in Meghalaya, alongside an additional ₹40,000 crore for other construction and bridge initiatives across the state.
Speaking at the inaugural session of the North East India Infrastructure Summit and Exhibition 2026 in New Shillong—an event attended by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio—the Union Minister firmly stressed that the commencement of these mega projects is entirely dependent on successfully acquiring land and securing environmental clearances from the concerned departments.
Addressing the gathering, Gadkari stated that the central government does not face a shortage of funds but lacks the available land to utilize those funds, clarifying that the Centre will not approve any budget for highway expansions unless a minimum of 90 percent of the required land acquisition is completed.
The ambitious ₹50,000-crore highway allocation outlines three major transformative corridors for the region.
This comprises a 165 km new Greenfield alignment stretching from Silchar to Shillong at an estimated cost of ₹23,000 crore, and a 66 km Greenfield route from Shillong to Guwahati valued at ₹8,500 crore, for which the Detailed Project Report (DPR) is in its final phase of preparation.
Furthermore, a combined brownfield and greenfield highway expansion project between Guwahati and Shillong worth ₹18,500 crore is underway, with its DPR already fully prepared.
Gadkari shared that land acquisition for the Silchar-Shillong corridor is already progressing and assured that the remaining road networks will begin immediately as soon as the state government completes its pending land clearance procedures.
Elaborating on the additional ₹40,000 crore infrastructure funding, the Minister stated that several regional project proposals have already been received. Among them, the proposal for the 136 km Goeragre–Baghmara–Dalu road stretch has already been forwarded to the Union Cabinet for official approval.
Additionally, the new four-lane Shillong-to-Silchar highway and a 66 km highway connecting Jorabat to Umiam are fully ready to take off, with the ministry aiming to launch the Umiam project within this year provided the land acquisition is secured.
This new alignment will drastically optimize travel by reducing the current Guwahati-Jorabat-Umiam distance from 100 km down to 66 km, subsequently cutting the total travel distance between Guwahati and Silchar from 330 km to 230 km.
Gadkari highlighted that this improved network connecting Siliguri, Guwahati, Shillong, and Silchar will act as a major boost for the tourism sector, confidently predicting that tourist footfall in the region will increase threefold.
To tackle localized traffic bottlenecks, he also announced a ₹330-crore project to build a 4-lane, 9 km road from Pomlum to Umtynger as part of the Shillong-Dawki route, which has a completed DPR and aims to completely ease traffic congestion.
Reiterating that land acquisition and environmental approvals from the forest department are the most vital determinants for execution, the Union Minister maintained that his ministry will reject projects that fail to achieve 90 percent clearances.
Showcasing the rapid development under the current administration, Gadkari pointed out that the road network in the North-East has expanded significantly from 10,000 km in 2014 to 16,290 km in 2026.
Meghalaya alone is currently hosting 92 ongoing National Highway projects spanning 1,600 km with a total investment of ₹52,400 crore.
He urged the state government to remain hardworking and establish a transparent, corruption-free administrative system that delivers results within strict timelines.
He further noted that while financial auditing is important, a performance audit of the work is far more critical to identify and foster leadership that can effectively execute tasks on the ground.
Gadkari concluded by encouraging the northeastern region to adopt modern construction methods, technology, and bamboo-based industries to minimize dependence on imports, scale up agricultural exports, and successfully transform the North-East into a self-sustaining, economically thriving region.
