Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to officially start works on a number of highway projects worth Rs29.95bn ($422.77m) in the state of Tamil Nadu.

In a statement, the Indian Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said: “Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will dedicate to the nation and lay the foundation stones for five National Highways projects worth Rs29.95bn ($422.77m) in Kanyakumari tomorrow.”

The prime minister will also inaugurate the two/four lane of Madurai-Ramnathpuram section of NH-87 (Old NH-49) that connects Madurai, Sivaganga, and Ramnathpuram districts.

Additionally, the PM will officially start construction of a flyover at Marthandum and Parvathipuram junctions of NH-47 in Kanniyakumari district.

“The 41.7km-long National Highway section will include eight major bridges, 17 minor bridges, three vehicular underpasses, and three railway over- bridges, as well as two flyovers.”

Furthermore, works will include a four-lane section of NH-44 from Panagudi to Kanniyakumari, as well as Narikulam Tank portion in Kanniyakumari district.

Prime Minister Modi will lay the foundation stone for four lanes of the Madurai-Chettikulam-Natham section of NH-785 in Madurai and Dindigul districts.

In the second week of February, Modi also laid the foundation stone of Rs19.38bn ($273.55m) NH 31 D highway project in Jalpaiguri, in the Indian state of West Bengal.

Under the project details, the 41.7km-long National Highway section will include eight major bridges, 17 minor bridges, three vehicular underpasses, and three railway over- bridges, as well as two flyovers.

Upon operational, the highway project is expected to reduce the distance from Salsalabari and Alipurduar to Siliguri by around 50km.