Archive · 25 Aug 2026
Madhya Pradesh Cabinet Clears ₹3,458 Crore Seoni-Balaghat Four-Lane Road Project
The Madhya Pradesh government approved a plan to make the road between Seoni and Balaghat much wider.
It will become a four-lane road with paved shoulders.
The road is about 91.64 kilometres long.
Officials expect the journey to become about one hour instead of nearly two hours.
Some of the road passes through a forest and a tiger tourism area.
The project is expected to cost ₹3,458 crore.
The government also approved 12 other roads and plans to borrow ₹4,600 crore from NABARD for these and related works.
It also approved new posts for Dhanvantari University in Ujjain and action in departmental cases involving alleged fraudulent payments.
The Madhya Pradesh Cabinet approved a ₹3,458 crore project to widen the 91.64-km Seoni-Balaghat highway into a four-lane road with paved shoulders.
About 6 km of the route passes through forest and the Tiger Tourism Corridor, with travel time expected to fall from nearly two hours to one.
The highway will be developed under the Hybrid Annuity Model, with a construction, maintenance and concession period of about 17 years.
The Cabinet also approved 12 other roads under the same model and a proposal to raise ₹4,600 crore through NABARD.
The roads will be transferred to the Madhya Pradesh Road Development Corporation, while officials facing departmental cases over alleged fraudulent payments received sanctions.
- Who
- The Madhya Pradesh Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, approved the proposals; Public Works Minister Rakesh Singh announced the decisions.
- What
- The Cabinet cleared the Seoni-Balaghat four-lane road, 12 other Hybrid Annuity Model roads, a ₹4,600 crore NABARD loan proposal, and related administrative measures.
- When
- The decisions were approved on Tuesday.
- Where
- The projects are in Madhya Pradesh, including the Seoni-Balaghat route and Dhanvantari University in Ujjain.
- Why
- The road projects are intended to improve connectivity, support tourism, expand the state’s road network, and improve execution and management of roads.
- Main project
- Upgrade of the approximately 91.64-km Seoni-Balaghat state highway to four lanes with paved shoulders.
- Estimated cost
- ₹3,458 crore.
- Expected travel time
- The journey is expected to fall from nearly two hours to one hour.
- Project model
- Hybrid Annuity Model, with a construction, maintenance and concession period of about 17 years.
- Additional roads
- Twelve new roads were approved under the same Hybrid Annuity Model.
- Proposed borrowing
- ₹4,600 crore through the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
- Other approvals
- Posts were approved for Dhanvantari University in Ujjain, and sanctions were granted in departmental cases involving fraudulent payments.