₹4,000- crore ring road around twin cities of Kolkata, Howrah; discussions underway

However, initially, only commercial vehicles will be allowed to operate on the highway. The proposal has been discussed with the Finance, Police, Public Works and Transport departments of the West Bengal government, he added.

“Nearly 40 per cent of the proposed road exists. Another 60 per cent needs to be constructed,” Chowdhury said. SVBTC, a technical special purpose vehicle, built the Nivedita Setu on the Hooghly river on BOT (build-operate-transfer) basis.

Over 90% of 4,800 families gave consent for Deocha-Pachami land acquisition

Meanwhile, in another development from West Bengal, over 90 per cent of the around 4,800 families affected by the Deocha-Pachami coal project have given their consent for land acquisition, West Bengal Power Minister Aroop Biswas said on Tuesday.

Exploratory drilling in the area is complete, and the detailed geological report from the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute is expected by May, he said.

“With over 90 per cent consent obtained from about 4,800 families, we are now beginning the process of gathering detailed family and property information through an app developed for the purpose,” he said.

This would ensure smooth rehabilitation and resettlement of the affected families living in the area where Asia’s largest coal mine would come up, Biswas said.

The government will be spending around ₹10,000 crore for the rehabilitation and resettlement programme, officials said.

The coal block has an estimated deposit of 2.1 billion ton and has the potential to attract an investment of ₹35,000 crore, according to the government.

* *With agency inputs