A section of the guardrail along the four-lane stretch of National Highway-29, just a few metres from the 'Welcome to the Hills of Nagaland - Unit Gate,’ is seen uprooted on July 16, 2025 following a rock fall. The stretch is prone to such incidents . (Morung Photo)
Morung Express News
Dimapur | August 7
The new revised target for completion much delayed National Highway-29 Dimapur-Kohima four-lane project is “June 2027,” as per data provided in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
In a written reply to an unstarred question highlighting the status of the Dimapur–Kohima Road (Package-III), the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Jairam Gadkari stated, “The revised target for completion is June, 2027.”
The Minister further highlighted that The Dimapur–Kohima road project was done divided into five packages.
This included two packages of the Dimapur Bypass Road (Assam & Nagaland portion) which have been “completed and are under the maintenance period.” Similar status is shown for Package-II.
While the physical progress achieved of Package-I is given as 99.81%, the revised target of completion is given for the contentious Package-III is given as “June 2027.”
It is unclear whether the ‘June 2027” deadline was typo for ‘June 2026’ as on the NHIDCL wevbstie, the project status “likely date of completion” is given as September 28, 2025.
During the proceedings of a Public Interest Litigation (Sou Motu) in the Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench on July 16, the Contractor counsel also submitted that as of 14.07.2025, the progress of the work is 73.87%. “The date of completion is 28.09.2025, and the respondent no. 15 (Contractor) shall make an endeavour to meet with the said timeline,” the Court stated.
According to the Minister’s reply, the Dimapur–Kohima four-lane road, including the Dimapur Bypass, was developed under the Special Accelerated Road Development Programme for North Eastern Region (SARDP-NE), spanning approximately 78 km of plain and hilly terrain.
The corridor has improved connectivity between Dimapur and Kohima, enhanced links with Manipur, and reduced travel time by up to three hours and also spurred economic activity, tourism, sericulture, and agro-product exports, he said.
To maintain quality, NHIDCL has appointed Authority/Independent Engineers for daily supervision, with regular inspections conducted to ensure compliance with IRC standards, the Minister maintained.
Any deficiencies are addressed through corrective actions, and penalties are imposed for defaults, as per contract provisions, he added.
Gadkari also acknowledged that the project faces geological challenges, contributing to delays and to address this, he added that slope protection and the use of RCC Box Cell Viaducts with push technology have been included to enhance structural stability and long-term cost-effectiveness.
