SC Orders To Keep Width Of Char Dham Highway At 5.5 Meters As Per 2018 MoRTH Circular [Read Order]

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed that the width of hilly and mountainous terrains for the Char Dham Highway project to be constructed in accordance with the 2018circular of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. A 3-judge bench comprising of Justices RF Nariman, Navin Sinha and Indira Banerjee took into consideration the current situation with regard to the eco system and fragility of the mountain terrains to order that the width of the road would remain at 5.5 metres. A High Power Committee constituted by Supreme Court in August 2019 submitted a Report in July 2020 whereby 13 members recommended following standards prescribed in a circular from 2012 while 5 members, including the Chairman, were in favour of going ahead according to the 2018 circular. The 2018 circular prescribes a width of 5.5 metres for the intermediate lane configuration along with two-lane structures for National Highways in hilly and mountainous terrains. On August 8, 2019, a bench comprising Justices R F Nariman and Surya Kant had modified the NGT order approving the Char Dham Highway project and constituted a High Powered Committee to assess and study the impact of the project on the Himalayan valleys.