NEW DELHI: The Cabinet on Wednesday approved two major infrastructure projects in poll-bound Bihar, with a combined investment of Rs 7,616 crore. The greenfield four-lane Mokama-Munger highway, spanning 82.4 km, will cost Rs 4,447 crore, while the doubling of the Bhagalpur-Dumka-Rampurhat railway section (117 route km) will require Rs 3,169 crore.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced that the access-controlled Mokama-Munger highway will significantly improve connectivity and boost economic activities. The highway corridor passes through key regional cities including Mokama, Barahiya, Lakhisarai, Jamalpur, and Munger, linking them to Bhagalpur.
According to an official statement, the four-lane access-controlled highway will feature close tolling, support average vehicular speeds of 80 kmph, and a design speed of 100 kmph. It is expected to reduce travel time to around 1.5 hours, providing safer, faster, and uninterrupted connectivity for both passenger and freight traffic.
The Munger-Jamalpur-Bhagalpur region in eastern Bihar is rapidly emerging as an industrial hub, home to an ordinance factory (including an existing gun factory and a proposed new facility as part of the Ordnance Factory Corridor), a locomotive workshop in Jamalpur, food processing units like ITC in Munger, along with associated logistics and warehousing centers.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated, “We are committed to further accelerating the economic development of the state through expanded connectivity.” He is scheduled to visit Bihar on Monday.
Regarding the doubling of the Bhagalpur-Dumka-Rampurhat railway section spanning Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal, the government said the enhanced line capacity will improve mobility, increasing efficiency and service reliability for the Railways.
