Setu Bharatam

Setu Bharatam programme was launched in 2016 and aims to make all National Highways free of railway level crossings by 2019. This is being done to prevent the frequent accidents and loss of lives at level crossings.

• In total 208 Railway over Bridges (RoB)/Railway under Bridges (RuB) was targeted to build at the level crossings as part of the programme. It also focuses on widening 1,500 bridges which were constructed in the British period and rehabilitation or replacement in a phased manner.

Issues with the Project

• The process of construction is very slow, and out of 208 planned railway over bridges, only 24 have been fully constructed and operational.
• The construction cost is borne by respective states, and therefore they may raise the cost of land for construction. Also, there are many formalities which need to be fulfilled before starting the construction like closing the railway crossings, prepare another lines, raising budget by the state government, advance action of land acquisition etc.

Ways to Improve

• There are certain loopholes in the scheme which needs to be ratified for proper functioning of the plan. Also reducing the regional inequalities in highway construction and prevalence across the country.
• Co -ordination among the centre and the state should strengthen for proper implementation of the programme.