Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday reviewed the four-lane elevated corridor project to avoid fatal incidents involving animals at the Kaziranga National Park.
The project approved by the Centre to build a 34 km elevated roads over nine animal corridors of the park will cost Rs 6,000 crore, and will add to the existing arterial roadway in the national park.
In a series of tweets Gadkari said, "This initiative entails the construction of approximately 34 km of elevated roads at sites identified by the Wildlife Institute of India, where animal crossings occur."
"Additionally, it involves widening the intervening at-grade road to a four-lane highway, totalling approximately 50 km in length, and building tunnels spanning approximately 3 km," the minister said.
At the meeting, as part of cost optimisation efforts, Gadkari instructed the concerned officials that the construction of the tunnels is treated as a separate project and that the debris and muck resulting from the construction work should be used in the road works.
"I have suggested the inclusion of viewing platforms on the elevated road, complete with vehicle parking and kiosks, to provide tourists with an opportunity for wildlife viewing," he said.A study conducted by the Gauhati University showed that 6,000 fatal animal incidents took place at the stretch where the elevated corridor is coming up.
During monsoon floods, an annual occurrence at the Kaziranga National Park, animals often flee to the Karbi Anglong hills at the southern end of the park by crossing the national highway.