India records slowest national highway construction year in 2025-26
Business
India's highway construction just had its slowest year since 2019-20, with fewer than 10,000km of new roads built and only 7,000km of fresh projects approved in 2025-26.
Tougher land rules and more red tape are mostly to blame for the slowdown.
Transport agencies focus on economic corridors
To work around these hurdles, agencies are now focusing on building economic corridors and expressways instead of just adding more highways.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) still beat its own target by finishing over 5,300km in 2025-26.
Meanwhile, competition among contractors has heated up, even as fewer projects get greenlit, raising concerns that future progress could be bumpy unless approvals get smoother.