A panel appointed by the Indian Government has cleared a road project worth Rs11.69bn ($155m) in the northern state of Punjab.

The panel, called the Public Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC), is headed by Economic Affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das.

The PPP projects that are being undertaken by infrastructure ministries, as well as departments of Union government are being given clearance through institutional systems, reported Press Trust of India.

"Government officials stated that the majority of road works would be undertaken in Arunachal Pradesh, followed by Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Himachal Pradesh and Manipur."

On 22 March, the PPPAC cleared four National Highway Projects with a total project cost of Rs57.06bn ($759m).

These included one project each in the states of Maharashtra and Punjab and two projects in Bihar.

Earlier this month, the Government of India announced its plans to construct nearly 2,000km of highways across 12 hill states, worth Rs250bn ($3.7bn).

Government officials stated that the majority of road works would be undertaken in Arunachal Pradesh, followed by Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Himachal Pradesh and Manipur.

The Indian Ministry of Road Transport and Highways intends to award highway projects that will include nearly 300km in Arunachal Pradesh, 256km in Mizoram, about 250km each in Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh, and 100km in Manipur.

Other highway projects will be undertaken in West Bengal, Sikkim, Nagaland, Assam and Uttarakhand.

In the current fiscal year, the road transport and highways ministry was allotted Rs570bn ($8.5bn), while the National Highways Development Authority has been permitted to raise tax-free bonds worth Rs150bn ($2.2bn)