Why highway maintenance is becoming India’s next big infrastructure challenge

As India's National Highway network expands, the government is shifting its focus from building roads to maintaining them. Here's how technology, long-term maintenance contracts and stricter monitoring are reshaping highway upkeep across the country.

Written by Shubham Chhabra

Updated: July 1, 2026 15:42 IST

With the National Highway network expanding, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) is increasingly focusing on road quality, preventive maintenance and technology-driven monitoring to ensure safer and more durable highways.

India’s highway building programme is entering a new phase where maintaining existing roads is becoming as important as constructing new ones. With the National Highway network expanding, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) is increasingly focusing on road quality, preventive maintenance and technology-driven monitoring to ensure safer and more durable highways.

India’s highway focus is shifting from construction to upkeep

Over the past decade, India has significantly expanded its National Highway network through projects such as Bharatmala and access-controlled expressways. As traffic volumes continue to rise, maintaining road quality throughout the asset’s lifecycle is emerging as one of the biggest infrastructure challenges.

Unlike construction, highway maintenance requires continuous monitoring, timely repairs and preventive interventions to prevent deterioration caused by heavy traffic, overloaded freight vehicles and extreme weather. In states such as Uttarakhand and Jharkhand, where landslides, heavy rainfall and difficult terrain frequently damage roads, regular maintenance is critical to ensuring uninterrupted connectivity.

During the review, Gadkari directed officials to speed up maintenance works, ensure strict adherence to quality standards and adopt modern construction technologies to improve the durability of highway infrastructure.

He also instructed agencies to prepare comprehensively for the upcoming monsoon by strengthening drainage systems, undertaking slope protection measures, carrying out preventive maintenance and establishing quick-response mechanisms to minimise disruptions and improve commuter safety.

Technology is changing how highways are monitored

To improve road maintenance, MoRTH has deployed advanced Network Survey Vehicles (NSVs) equipped with 3D laser-based technology across National Highway corridors. The initiative is aimed at detecting defects early and enabling authorities to undertake preventive repairs before road conditions deteriorate.

The vehicles are equipped with laser profilers, GPS systems, high-resolution cameras and advanced imaging sensors that identify potholes, cracks, patches and surface unevenness while generating detailed digital maps of highways.

Unlike traditional surveys that could inspect only 20-80 km of highways a day, the new NSVs can survey up to 300 km daily. The data is transmitted to a centralised monitoring centre within 48 hours, analysed by expert teams and converted into actionable reports within 10 days, compared with four to six months under the earlier process.

Survey findings are also integrated into NHAI’s AI-powered Data Lake platform, while a dedicated mobile application enables field engineers to upload geo-tagged photographs, monitor repair work in real time and track defect rectification, improving accountability across maintenance agencies.

Government targets full maintenance coverage of National Highways

The Centre is also restructuring how highway maintenance is managed by assigning clear responsibility for every stretch of the National Highway network.

For highways under construction or operating under concession models such as Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT), Toll Operate Transfer (TOT), Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) and Operation, Maintenance and Transfer (OMT), maintenance remains the responsibility of the respective concessionaire during the concession or defect liability period.

For the remaining stretches, MoRTH is increasingly relying on Performance-Based Maintenance Contracts (PBMC) and Short-Term Maintenance Contracts (STMC). While STMCs generally run for one to two years, PBMCs extend for five to seven years, making contractors responsible for maintaining predefined road quality standards over a longer period.

The ministry has spent an average of Rs 7,400 crore annually on maintenance and repair of National Highways over the last three years. As of December 2025, development works were underway on around 34,000 km of the 1.46 lakh-km National Highway network, while about 59,000 km remained under concession or defect liability periods. Another 45,000 km was already covered under PBMC and STMC maintenance contracts.

The remaining stretches are planned to be brought under maintenance contracts during FY26, with the government targeting 100% maintenance coverage of the National Highway network through accountable maintenance agencies.

Why monsoon preparedness has become critical

Heavy rainfall remains one of the biggest threats to India’s highway infrastructure, particularly in mountainous and high-rainfall regions. Flooding, waterlogging, pavement failures and landslides frequently disrupt traffic and increase maintenance costs.