Samruddhi Mahamarg to connect 12 more districts

February 9, 2024: In a bid to improve connectivity, the Mumbai Nagpur Expressway, also known as the Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg, will be expanded and will connect 12 more districts of the Vidarbha region. The Maharashtra government will spend around Rs 60,000 crore on this expansion project.

The land expansion for the project is expected to start in April, mentioned media reports.

• The Nagpur, Bhandara and Gondia districts will be connected by the 141 km Nagpur Gondia Expressway. Media reports suggest that around Rs 15,622 crore will be invested by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC). This expressway will connect the Samruddhi Mahamarg to Nagpur Ring Road and eventually to Bhandara and Gadchiroli.
• The 142 km Bhandara –Gondia Highway will connect the districts of Bhandara, Gondia and Gadchiroli districts. This will be connected to the Nagpur-Gondia Highway and Durg-Hyderabad Highway. Media reports mention that close to Rs 6,370 crore will be spent on this project.
• Three districts – Nagpur, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli will be connected through the Nagpur to Chandrapur route. Around Rs 10,559 crore is expected expenditure of the 195 km. The Samruddhi Mahamarg will be connected through the Sindhi Dry Port Interchange; it will also be connected to Surajgad Mining Corridor and Durg to Hyderabad Highway.
• Parbhani, Hingoli and Nanded districts will be between Jalna and Nanded. The cost of the project is around Rs 19,000 crore.

Currently, the 701-km expressway passes through 392 villages across 10 districts- Nagpur, Wardha, Amaravati, Washim, Buldana, Jalna, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Nashik, Ahmednagar and Thane.

The Samruddhi Mahamarg is being developed in three phases. While Phase 1 was inaugurated in December 2022 by PM Modi, phase 2 was inaugurated in May 2023. The expressway is expected to be fully operational in 2024.