3,147cr NH-43 work begins, boosting CG to J’khand link

Raipur: The road that promises to pull Chhattisgarh's Raipur-Jashpur districts closer to Jharkhand's coal-steel belt has begun taking shape on the ground. NHAI has started construction on the 3,147 crore Pathalgaon-Kunkuri to Chhattisgarh-Jharkhand border stretch of NH-43, a key part of the 627 km Raipur-Dhanbad economic corridor. Nearly 384km of this corridor passes through Chhattisgarh, making the state central to the project's success.The 104.25km Pathalgaon-Jharkhand border section is being seen as one of the most crucial links in the corridor. Once completed, it is expected to strengthen road connectivity between Raipur, Bilaspur, Raigarh and Korba on one side, and Dhanbad, Ranchi and Jamshedpur on the other — easing movement of coal, steel and other commercial traffic.NHAI officials said the project is being built not merely as a highway, but as a safer, faster transport spine. Along the route, 382 structures are planned, including seven major bridges, 30 minor bridges, six flyovers and one elevated viaduct. The design also includes underpasses for vehicles, light traffic, cattle, pedestrians and wildlife, besides 278 box culverts.To minimise disruption to local life and ecology, planners have also incorporated multiple underpasses — for vehicles, light traffic, pedestrians and even cattle movement — alongside hundreds of box culverts.DD Parlawar, project director of NHAI's Korba project unit, described the stretch as the "backbone" of the Raipur-Dhanbad corridor, saying it would give fresh momentum to inter-state trade and logistics between Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.For Jashpur, the project could be transformative. Towns such as Pathalgaon, Kansabel, Kunkuri, Duldula and Jashpur will be linked into a stronger transport network, cutting travel time, saving fuel and reducing logistics costs.Officials say the corridor is also expected to open up employment and business opportunities for local communities by improving movement of goods, minerals and passenger traffic.However, the project also carries a larger subtext — of infrastructure pushing deeper into regions once marked by limited connectivity. If timelines hold, the highway could become one of the defining development spines linking central India to the mineral-rich east, officials said.