SDG 9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure | SDG 11: Sustainable Cities & Communities
Institutions: Ministry of Road Transport & Highways | National Highways Authority of India
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has outlined a strategic shift in India’s infrastructure policy—from building highways as physical assets to developing them as digital, data-driven public infrastructure. According to the Ministry, the national road network now spans 63 lakh km, with 1.46 lakh km of national highways (a 60 % increase since 2014). Yet, the emphasis is no longer on kilometres built but on how highways connect, communicate, and compute.
The Ministry’s digital-highway vision includes:
FASTag achieving 98 % penetration and 8 crore users, enabling seamless tolling and real-time traffic analytics.
The RajmargYatra app with 15 lakh downloads, integrating user feedback, road-condition reporting, and highway service maps.
A 360° digital-lifecycle platform covering project planning (DPRs), construction monitoring, maintenance scheduling, and toll management.
Together, these elements form India’s new “connected-infrastructure ecosystem,” where every road becomes part of the country’s digital-public-infrastructure grid. This transition positions India’s highway network as both an economic backbone and a digital spine, aligning with the PM Gati Shakti, Digital India 2.0, and Viksit Bharat @ 2047 frameworks. By embedding sensors, data systems, and integrated tolling, MoRTH is transforming highways into platforms for:
Predictive maintenance and accident reduction;
Logistics optimisation and real-time freight tracking;
Transparent toll governance and service-quality monitoring.
For policymakers, the challenge now lies in ensuring inter-operability, cybersecurity, and equitable access so that the benefits of “smart mobility” reach every region and income group.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: As highways become data-driven, how can policymakers prevent digital exclusion—ensuring that rural users, small transporters, and informal logistics operators are not left behind in the transition to app-based mobility services?
Follow the full release here: India Redefines Highways as Digital Infrastructure Backbone