Guwahati, Jan 18: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 18 performed the Bhoomi Pujan for the Kaziranga Elevated Corridor Project in Assam, marking the start of a landmark infrastructure initiative aimed at ensuring safe wildlife movement while significantly improving regional connectivity.
The 86-km project is an environmentally conscious national highway development that includes a 35-km elevated wildlife corridor passing through Kaziranga National Park, a 21-km bypass section, and the widening of 30 km of the existing NH-715, formerly NH-37, from two to four lanes. The project has been designed to protect the park’s rich biodiversity while enhancing road safety and supporting ecotourism.
Officials said the Rs 6,957-crore project would help reduce accidents on the busy NH-37 and strengthen connectivity between Central and Upper Assam. The project involves four-laning of the Kaliabor–Numaligarh section and the construction of approximately 34.45 km of elevated corridor, along with bypasses at Jakhalabandha and Bokakhat to ease congestion in urban areas.
The elevated corridor has been designed in compliance with Supreme Court directions and recommendations of the Wildlife Institute of India. Dedicated spaces underneath the structure will allow animals to move safely between Kaziranga National Park and the Karbi Anglong Hills, particularly during the annual flood season when wildlife movement increases.
The flagship project will be implemented by the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, with construction expected to be completed within 36 months. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had earlier approved the four-laning of the 86.675-km stretch along with the 34.5-km elevated corridor.
Ahead of the event, Prime Minister Modi, in a post on X, said the elevated corridor across Kaziranga would go a long way in safeguarding animals, especially during the monsoon season. Responding to the post, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma described the project as a landmark step that balances wildlife protection with improved connectivity.
Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve is globally renowned for its biodiversity and is home to the world’s largest population of one-horned rhinoceroses, along with tigers, elephants, wild water buffalo and swamp deer. The park spans the Brahmaputra floodplains and is characterised by vast grasslands, forests and wetlands.
