Shaktipeeth Expressway project

The Maharashtra Cabinet on June 24 approved the acquisition of land for the proposed Nagpur-Goa Shaktipeeth Expressway project.

Key Highlights

• Project Type: A six-lane greenfield (new alignment), access-controlled corridor.
• Estimated Cost: Over Rs 80,000 crore.
• Length: The proposed expressway will be 802 kilometers long.
• Connectivity: It will connect central and western Maharashtra to Goa.
• Alignment: Stretching from Pavnar in Wardha district (eastern Maharashtra) to Patradevi in Sindhudurg (on the Maharashtra-Goa border).
• Districts Covered: The expressway will pass through 12 districts.
• Naming & Purpose: Named after the revered Shakti Peethas (important Hindu pilgrimage sites), the expressway is envisioned to:
  • Improve connectivity to sacred sites.
  • Boost regional development and economic integration in the state.
  • It is designed primarily to serve the religious tourism corridor, linking 18 major pilgrimage sites, including prominent Shaktipeeths like:
    • Renuka Devi in Mahur
    • Tulja Bhavani in Tuljapur
    • Mahalakshmi in Kolhapur
    • Patradevi in Goa
• Current Challenges: The project is already facing stiff resistance from farmers along its proposed alignment.

Context with Samruddhi Mahamarg:

• This project comes 20 days after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated a 76-kilometre stretch of the Samruddhi Mahamarg.
• This inauguration marked the completion of the entire 701-kilometre Samruddhi Mahamarg, connecting Mumbai and Nagpur.
• The Samruddhi Mahamarg was first envisioned as Devendra Fadnavis’s flagship infrastructure project during his tenure as Chief Minister in 2016.

(Source: IE)