The Indian Government has approved Rs10.9bn ($219.4m) for four / two-laning and construction of a paved shoulder on the Birmitrapur-Barkote section of National Highway-23, which passes through the state of Orissa.

The work involves widening 125.615km of the highway, which spans in the districts of Sundargah and Deogarh in Orissa.

The project will be implemented under National Highway Development Programme (NHDP) Phase IVA and carried out in DBFOT basis with BOT (Toll) mode of delivery.

Of the total cost, Rs.3.2bn ($64m) will be spent on land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation, and pre-construction.

The concession period for the project is 23 years including a construction period of 30 months.

The project is expected to reduce the time and cost of travel between Birmitrapur and Barkote.