Overview

• The National Highway Authority of India annulled the tender for a segment of the 346 km Coastal Highway, attributing the decision to administrative reasons.
• BJD vice-president Sanjay Das Burma condemned the move as a ‘double betrayal’, accusing the Centre and state governments of failing to execute the project since its 2015 announcement.
• Officials have signalled that the highway could be built as a two-lane road rather than the originally planned four lanes, a change denounced by local leaders as unacceptable.
• The ambitious corridor was initially conceived as a 413 km route under the Sagarmala scheme before being trimmed to 346 km, with the detailed project report for the remaining 170 km stretch still pending.
• Backers say the highway would enhance Odisha’s infrastructure, boost tourism, improve coastal connectivity and strengthen disaster response in cyclone-prone regions.