India - Third National Highway Project

Report No. PID7403 Project Name India-Third National Highway Project (+) Region South Asia Region Sector TH - Highways Project INPE9972 Borrower Government of India (GOI) Implementing Agency National Highway Authority of India Environment Category B Date PID Prepared February 24, 1999 Projected Appraisal Date May 15, 1999 Projected Board Date October 12, 1999 1. Country and Sector Background In India, the demand for road transport has been growing at about 10% per annum during the past decade. A considerable shift towards road transport has occurred in the past few years. At present, the road network carries about 60% of all freight ton-km and 80% of all passenger-km of travel, and these figures are expected to increase further by the year 2000. India's National Highway (NH) network covers about 34,300 km (1.2% of the country's total) on which about 40% of India's total goods and passenger traffic travel. Although passenger and freight traffic increased at the rate of about 10% annually between 1951 to 1995, the length of NH network increased only slightly by about 1.2%. Surprisingly, for roads carrying such high volumes of traffic, 15% of the NH network is single lane and only 2% are four-lane. This situation leads to congestion, slows down traffic, increases vehicle operating costs, and compromises road traffic standards. 2. Objectives The objective of the Project is to enhance the durability, efficiency, and economic impact of a sustainable National Highway network in use. 3. Rationale for Bank's Involvement The Bank is in a unique position to respond to the opportunities and challenges posed by the demand for road transport in India by providing and catalyzing the critical long term capital needed in the transport sector to support accelerated growth; using the leverage of its lending volume and its advisory capabilities to accelerate the institutional and policy reform process; and ensuring that social development and environmental concerns are fully reflected and integrated in project design, preparation and implementation. 4. Description The project has three main components: Civil Works: upgrading and four-laning about 600 km of existing National Highway in three sections  Institutional Strengthening: to enhance the capacity of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) in creating and maintaining assets, and Policy Reform: to pilot alternative methods of corridor management with private sector involvement, increased focus on traffic management, safety and roadside management and services. 5. Financing Total (US$m) Government 155 IBRD 435 Total Project Cost 580 6. Implementation The project will be prepared, implemented and coordinated by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) with the assistance of design consultants, supervision consultants and contractors. NHAI has established a project coordination unit at its head office, and project staff offices at the site of each proposed major works component, to work closely with the preparation consultants and state and local stakeholders. 7. Sustainability Project benefits can be sustained through a commitment to maintain the created road assets and ensuring a steady flow of funds into maintaining the NH network as per the finance commission norms. Additionally, strengthening the institutional structure for maintaining the corridors, financing of maintenance through a dedicated road fund, using a systematic approach to maintaining roads and bridges in a coordinated manner, managing construction, maintenance and consultancy contracts and implementing road safety measures will go a long way in achieving sustainability. 8. Lessons learned from past operations in the country/sector To varying degrees, previous road transport projects in India have suffered from: poor quality at entry due to inadequate project preparation; weak institutional capabilities for project management and contract administration; inexperience with Bank procurement procedures and insufficient use of advance procurement actions; inadequate inter-agency coordination; delays in handing- over project sites to contractors; and weak capabilities of contractor and consultant. As a result of the experience gained from implementing several road projects in India, the preparation and implementation of future operations have incorporated the following lessons: engineering, social, environmental and institutional aspects of the project will be comprehensively prepared in an integrated manner before project appraisal to ensure quality at entry; required strengthening of basic institutional capacities for effective project management will be prepared in advance and implemented early in the life of the project; procurement capabilities have been bolstered from project design, with initial contracts based on completed designs, strict pre-qualification criteria and ready to be awarded before project effectiveness; the government will be required to enhance inter-agency coordination within and outside the Central Government; site readiness will be linked to Bank approval of contract awards; the development of competitive and updated contractor and consultant - 2-  companies is encouraged through efficient procurement, improved project management and contract administration; and the financial assessment and disbursement system improvements will be undertaken before project effectiveness. During project preparation, workshops were held to address environmental and social issues and to help NHAI to familiarize itself with mitigation measures. 9. Program of Targeted Intervention (PTI) No 10. Environmental Aspects (including any public consultation) Environmental issues relating to the four-laning and upgrading of the three road segments included under the project are: potential noise pollution may lead to large scale acquisition of land, houses, and shops affecting habitation and economic activities. In addition, the proposed road traverses major perennial and seasonal rivers, railway over-bridges, reserved forest areas (in one section only), canal crossings, other water bodies (ponds etc.) and has steep slopes and embankments. The tree lining along the road is also dense, with some old trees and rows of newer plantations. Therefore, the social and environmental impacts are cumulative. These are addressed in the Social and Environmental assessments. 11. Contact Point: The InfoShop The World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone No. (202)458 5454 Fax No. (202) 522 1500 Task Manager Anil Bhandari, The World Bank, 70 Lodi Estate, New Delhi 110 003, India Telephone: 91-11-461-9496, Fax: 91-11-461-9393 Note: This is information on an evolving project. Certain activities and/or components may not be included in the final project. Processed by the InfoShop week ending March 5, 1999. - 3 -  Annex Because this is a Category B project, it may be required that the borrower prepare a separate EA report. If a separate EA report is required, once it is prepared and submitted to the Bank, in accordance with OP 4.01, Environmental Assessment, it will be filed as an annex to the Public Information Document (PID) . If no separate EA report is required, the PID will not contain an EA annex; the findings and recommendations of the EA will be reflected in the body of the PID. -4-