Gadkari to Skip Mumbai-Goa Highway Inauguration, Cites Shame Over Delays

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has said he will not attend the inauguration of the Mumbai-Goa highway, citing his embarrassment over the prolonged delay in completing the project. Speaking after inaugurating a six-lane elevated road corridor at Porvorim near Panaji, he said the slow pace of the highway's widening work had prompted him to stay away from the ceremony.

Gadkari announced that he would travel the entire length of the highway in October to review the progress himself. He said he would land at Mumbai airport and then drive down to Goa to assess whether the route had been made convenient for travellers. The highway runs through the coastal Konkan belt of Maharashtra.

The event in Goa was attended by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Union minister Shripad Naik, State Public Works Department Minister Digambar Kamat and Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte.

Gadkari also reiterated that strict action against contractors and officials responsible for delays and poor-quality work on infrastructure projects would continue. He said he wanted to set a record within a year for blacklisting the largest number of contractors, taking action against them and suspending officials, adding that he would not stop these measures.

The Mumbai-Goa highway has faced repeated setbacks. In April 2015, Gadkari had said the long-delayed project would likely be completed by June that year. He has previously attributed the delays to legal disputes and internal conflicts over land acquisition. Waterlogging on low-lying stretches, especially during the monsoon, has also hampered construction and affected the road's usability, though he had said these issues were limited in scope.

In March this year, he noted that forest clearances had held up work on some stretches, saying incomplete portions passing through forest areas were being resolved in coordination with the concerned authorities.