NHAI projects have faced issues with the use of substandard materials, leading to significant safety concerns and infrastructure failures, as evidenced by reports of high phosphorus and sulfur in steel and structural defects in highways, bridges and tunnels\u00a0\u00a0in Jammu and Kashmir.\u00a0\u00a0Despite NHAI has been implementing stricter quality control measures, such as enhanced third-party testing, a multi-level quality control system, and a move away from the “One-Time Source Approval” system for manufacturers to improve transparency and ensure adherence to standards, but all in vain. NHAI\u00a0\u00a0had issued show-cause notices in January this year to steel manufacturers because third-party tests revealed their reinforcement bars failed to meet IS:1786 standards. The steel contained excessive levels of phosphorus and sulfur, which compromise its strength and durability.\u00a0\u00a0Reports highlight instances of widespread cracking in concrete slabs and structural deformations in projects. The poor quality of materials used in highway and bridge construction directly impacts their structural integrity, creating safety risks and potentially leading to premature failure.\u00a0\u00a0The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway NH-44, is\u00a0\u00a0known as critical all-weather lifeline connecting the Kashmir Valley with the rest of India, vital for economic activity and connectivity, but it is frequently disrupted\u00a0\u00a0due\u00a0\u00a0to landslides and heavy rainfall since August 7, 2025. Its importance is high for\u00a0\u00a0Jammu and Kashmir’s economy, especially during the\u00a0\u00a0present fruit season. Both Udhampur and Ramban sections have become notorious for its poor condition, frequent landslides, and routine closures even during the clear weather causing immense hardship to\u00a0\u00a0commuters and disrupting connectivity in the region.\u00a0\u00a0The Jammu-Pathankot,Jammu Srinagar and\u00a0\u00a0Jammu-Poonch condition of the road remains far from satisfactory. The\u00a0\u00a0ain reason behind is poor quality of construction, substandard materials used construction of highways, bridges by NHAI\u00a0\u00a0and the lack of regular maintenance have left the highway vulnerable to fast deterioration.\u00a0\u00a0A journey on highways in J&K\u00a0\u00a0has turned into a nightmare for the commuters by the NHAI. The poor maintenance of the Jammu-Pathankot\u00a0\u00a0Highway road by the NHAI is said to be the reason of this frustration and chaos. The commuters are getting trapped\u00a0\u00a0for j hours since 2019. The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI)\u00a0\u00a0is facing with a challenging situation to keep the highways open in view of major damages at several places d ue to use of substandard materisl in constructions of roads, bridges in J&K.\u00a0\u00a0The corruption in the NHAI has increased many a fold the reason best knwon to the Union Surface and transports ministry after 2014. If NHAI will continue with the same speed It will take\u00a0\u00a0five to ten\u00a0\u00a0years to complete\u00a0\u00a0Jammu-Pathnakot 10 kms stretch.\u00a0\u00a0It may be recalled that in September this year, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has flagged cases of “non-compliance” by\u00a0\u00a0NHAI where its advice was substantially diluted in corruption cases, according to its latest annual report.\u00a0\u00a0What is wrong with NHAI? Central govt as well as the union transport and Surface ministry\u00a0\u00a0are ignoring what the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is doing wrong. Many things, which can be classified into three sets of problems\u00a0\u00a0fundamental flaws, corruption and policy problems. Bad design and planning are pervasive across all projects of NHAI in Himalayan Region of Jammu and Kashmir.\u00a0\u00a0Bad execution is of two types\u00a0\u00a0one, quality control is bad and second, the necessary planned infrastructure is not constructed. The World Economic Forum reports rank India below 50 in quality of road survey. If actual quality is tested, we will fare far worse. Highways have fared worse in terms of quality primarily because of selection of construction contractors. However, construction contracts award corruption is well known and the modus operandi has in fact shamefully become a standard operating procedure for procurement process by Centre government body (NHAI).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NHAI projects have faced issues with the use of substandard materials, leading to significant safety concerns and infrastructure failures, as evidenced by reports of high phosphorus and sulfur in steel and structural defects in highways, bridges and tunnels\u00a0\u00a0in Jammu and Kashmir.\u00a0\u00a0Despite NHAI has been implementing stricter quality control measures, such as enhanced third-party testing, a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40301,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40589","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-edit-opinion"],"yoast_head":"\n