Gadkari Unveils ₹15,000 Crore Maharashtra-Karnataka Ring Road Bypassing Goa; Announces Eiffel Tower-Inspired Zuari Bridge Observatory.

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari,recently announced a significant infrastructure push for the Konkan region, including a new ₹12,000 crore to ₹15,000 crore ring road designed to bypass Goa, connecting Maharashtra directly to Karnataka. This major project comes in response to pleas from Goa Chief Minister Promod Sawant and Minister for Power and Renewable Energy, Shripad Naik, who sought an alternative to alleviate congestion on national highways.

The proposed ring road will skirt the outer edge of the coastal region, strategically avoiding the need to cut through the middle of Goa, thereby aiming to decongest the existing national highway network. "The Union ministry of road transport and highways is considering a ring road from Patradevi (village on Goa-Maharashtra border) to Karnataka which will run through the outer side of Goa, avoiding to cut through middle of the state, to decongest the national highway,” Gadkari stated while addressing a gathering in South Goa.

Eiffel Tower-Inspired Observatory on Zuari Bridge

Gadkari made these announcements at the foundation stone-laying ceremony for an upcoming observatory tower on the new Zuari Bridge. This ambitious project, he revealed, is being developed on a public-private partnership (PPP) model and will draw inspiration from Paris’s iconic Eiffel Tower. The tower is envisioned to include viewing decks, a restaurant, and other tourist-friendly amenities.

“I had suggested that the tower should be like Eiffel Tower from where you can see Goa and the ocean,” the minister shared, adding, “The completion of the tower in Goa would make it an international attraction. The towers would be famous across the world.” He also mentioned that a similar project is being considered for Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh.

Gadkari further highlighted the potential for significant revenue generation through the observatory, suggesting that the government could earn substantial amounts through GST on visitor tickets. He also proposed that the tower incorporate displays detailing Goa's history of liberation, advocating for a transparent and technologically driven narrative. “We should tell the history in a transparent manner with the use of technology,” he emphasized.

Additional Infrastructure Boost

In addition to the ring road and the innovative observatory tower, Gadkari announced several other infrastructure projects worth thousands of crores, aimed at bolstering connectivity and development in the region:

• ₹1,200 crore for a four-lane road from Cuncolim to Benurdem in South Goa.


• ₹2,000 crore for a four-lane road from the Karnataka border to Mollem.


• ₹1,000 crore for four-laning the stretch between Mollem and Khandepar.


• ₹1,200 crore for a new bridge near the existing Zuari bridge at Borim.