Koppal: Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, laid the foundation stone for the four-laning of the NH-63 running through Hubballi, Hosapete and Ballari here on Saturday.
Accompanied by Union minister of state for sanitation and drinking water, Ramesh Jigajinagi, he also launched work on construction of a flyover at Kushtagi on NH-50, and various other projects costing Rs 230 crore.
The Centre's decision to approve the long pending four-laning of the highway has brought cheer to the people of North Karnataka as it will cut travel time between Hubballi and Hospete to three-hours from the present six.
The highway will be the first of its kind to be cemented in the Hyderabad-Karnatak region. Providing the only route to the World Heritage Site of Hampi from Hubballi via Hospete, it sees a high volume of traffic most days. The four-laning of the 143-km stretch is also expected to give a much-needed boost to Hubballi as a hub of trade and commerce.
Lt Col A K Janbaz, general manager, National Highways Authority of India, Dharwad, said the project would cost Rs 2,200 crore to execute and would be carried out by the Hyderabad-based BSCPL and KNR companies under NHAI supervision.
