Overview
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to perform the bhoomi pujan in Kaliabor, Nagaon district, launching the four-laning and elevated-corridor package on the Kaliabor–Numaligarh stretch of NH-715.
- The 85.675 km scheme includes a roughly 34.5–35 km elevated section across nine animal corridors, 30.22 km of upgrades to the existing highway, and about 21 km of new bypasses at Jakhalabandha and Bokakhat.
- Designed as a wildlife-friendly highway, the corridor aims to cut vehicle–animal collisions that spike during floods as animals move from Kaziranga to the Karbi Anglong hills.
- Studies cited by officials and media report 6,036 roadkills in 2016–17 on this stretch and at least 82–85 large mammals killed between 2020 and 2025, underscoring the conservation need.
- Cleared by the CCEA with WII and NBWL nods, the NHAI-led EPC project carries environmental conditions such as no peak-flood works and continuous wildlife monitoring, with projections of faster travel to Upper Assam, significant time savings, and nearly 35 lakh person-days of employment.