The National Highways Authority of India is checking 17 under-construction highway projects where contractors quoted bids over 15 percent below estimates. NHAI said, "The first round of inspections is scheduled to be completed by December 2026." Teams of 39 engineers will inspect these projects to ensure better road quality standards.
The projects, each worth over ₹500 crore and 35-80 per cent complete, will be checked by teams led by 39 serving and retired government engineers
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is carrying out special quality inspections of 17 under-construction highway projects where contractors quoted bids more than 15 per cent below the estimated project cost, amid growing scrutiny of the quality and durability of road infrastructure.
The additional inspections will focus on projects costing more than ₹500 crore and currently between 35 and 80 per cent complete, NHAI said on Wednesday. The first round is scheduled to be completed by December 2026, after which the selected projects will be inspected again six months later by a different team.
The move comes against the backdrop of several recent instances of damage to highways and expressways. The Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, for instance, developed large potholes and a road surface cave-in within months of its inauguration, with NHAI attributing the damage to localised water stagnation after residents allegedly blocked work on a permanent cross-drainage culvert.
Other highways, including the Kanpur-Lucknow and Ganga Expressways, have also faced reports of road cave-ins and surface erosion, while heavy monsoon rains have caused flooding and traffic disruption on stretches of NH-48 and NH-24.
These inspections are in addition to regular quality checks and are aimed at identifying any quality-related issues at an early stage so that corrective action can be taken on time, NHAI said in a statement.
"The first round of inspections is scheduled to be completed by December 2026," the statement said, adding that NHAI will re-inspect the identified projects after 6 months with a different team of experts to ensure quality and adherence to construction standards.
These projects include greenfield and access-controlled corridors, bypasses, as well as four- and six-laning works in the states of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.
In order to reinforce quality mechanism and ensure compliance, NHAI said it has created a pool of experts.
"The inspections will be carried out by specialised teams led by 39 experienced and retired engineers from various government organisations, including the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Defence and State Public Works Departments," it said, adding that technical experts will also support the teams during the inspections.
The teams will check construction work against approved drawings, technical specifications, contract conditions and project-specific quality plans. They will examine the quality of construction materials, workmanship, construction methods as well as records of sampling and testing, NHAI added.
The inspections will also cover road safety measures, traffic management and environmental safeguards, wherever applicable.
The specialised inspections will also help NHAI to identify common quality issues, construction practices and areas where greater accountability is required from contractors, consultants and other project stakeholders, it said.