Municipal waste to be used to build roads by 2027: Gadkari
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari with TR Paarivendhar,
Founder Chancellor, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, at the 21st Convocation of the institute, on Monday.
| Photo Credit:
Bijoy Ghosh
Municipal waste will be one of the alternative components to be used extensively in road construction, said Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways.
“We plan to use all municipal waste in the country, before 2027, in road construction,” he said at the 21st convocation of the SRM Institute of Science and Technology, on Monday.
Nearly 80 lakh tonnes of municipal waste have been used in the construction of national highways. The Ahmedabad-Dholero expressway saw about 25 lakh tonne of municipal waste of Ahmedabad being used. About 40 lakh tonnes of waste went into the contruction of the Mumbai-Delhi highway, the minister said.
Automobile sector
Talking about the automobile industry, Gadkari said that when he took charge as the Minister for Road and Highways, the total size of the sector was ₹14 lakh crore, and India was ranked seventh in the world. Eight months ago, India surpassed Japan to take the third spot (with ₹22 lakh crore) after the US (with a revenue of ₹78 lakh crore), followed by China (₹49 lakh crore). This industry is giving the maximum revenue as GST to the State and Central governments; it has created 4.5 lakh jobs, and sees maximum exports, he said.
The minister said that during his meeting with all the stakeholders in the automobile industry, he asked them to research on alternative fuel and bio-fuel like ethanol, methanol, bio-diesel, LNG, CNG and electric. “Hydrogen is the future. Futuristic technology and a futuristic vision for development are very important. Today, we need to build India’s energy security. This is a big challenge,” he said.
“At the National Highways Authority of India, we have constructed a road using bio-bitumen made from rice straw. This has been certified by the Central Research Organisation and has proved to be better than petroleum bitumen. We are in the process of making hydrogen, which is the future. Using electrolyser to make hydrogen by converting water is very costly, as to make 1 kg of hydrogen, we need 50 units of power,” he said.
During the convocation, 15,105 degrees were awarded to those who have completed their doctoral, undergraduate and post graduate degree and diploma programmes. Bharat Bhasker, Director, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, was conferred with the Degree of Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa).
Connecting Pondy
Gadkari also laid the foundation stone for three national highways in Puducherry, on Monday.
A 38-km-long four-lane Puducherry–Poondiyankuppam section of NH-32 will come up at a cost of ₹1,588 crore. Gadkari also laid the foundation stone for a four-km elevated corridor between Indira Gandhi Square and Rajiv Gandhi Square on NH-32 at an outlay of ₹436 crore. Additionally, he inaugurated improvement works on a 14-km stretch of the East Coast Road (NH-332A), at an investment of ₹25 crore. The minister added that work on two NHs will begin within three months.
Additionally, the Minister informed that bids have been invited for the ₹2,200-crore, 46-km four-lane Marakkanam–Puducherry section, and the project will be awarded before December.
Published on October 13, 2025
