Prefabricated material would be used for road construction: VK Singh

NEW DELHI: Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways V K Singh on Friday said prefabricated material would be used for making roads, which may increase the highway construction pace to 100-150 km a day from the present 33 km.

''We are today working on ensuring that most of our things are prefabricated, except for making foundations for bridges and other things. Rest all will come as prefabricated material being built in a factory, being transported to site so that on the site there is less pollution.

''There's much more emphasis coming in and I'm sure that day is not far off when...we will be able to make the road surface with these prefabricated things which will come from factories and just be laid. So today if we are getting 33 km, may be we will get 100 to 150 km...it is going to come,'' the minister explained.

Speaking during a conference on 'Decarbonizing Construction: Building a Low Carbon Future' organised by FICCI, Singh said it is not just that the roads are being built but the standards for alternative fuels are also being laid.

''We have also tried out biofuels for aircraft. Still there's a certain amount of study and research that is going on, because the aim is that most of the decarbonisation for the aviation sector will be if we can change the fuel system of our aircraft and yet maintain it to be safe,'' the minister said.

The government, he said, is also working on green highways. The road ministry is creating expressways, and highways will have a lot of green cover on either side of the road, to reduce Co2 emissions.

''There are enough indigenous plants, whether it is Banyan...Peepal, whether it is neem. They are all in that variety,'' the minister said.

In a lot of areas, the government has also entered into agreement with central groups of the villages which can look after these plantations.