The session was chaired by the NHAI chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav and brought together senior officials from NHAI, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (the Ministry) and key central ministries and departments. Participants included representatives from the power and rail sectors, the Department of Legal Affairs, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and the Department of Land Resources as well as the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad. The objective was to expedite approvals, minimise procedural delays and ensure timely delivery of projects through proactive interdepartmental collaboration.
The workshop featured focused technical sessions that covered a comprehensive overview of the National Highways Act, 1956 and practical approaches to land acquisition and integrated planning. Sessions examined litigation in land acquisition for national highways, case studies and important judgements, end to end litigation management and measures to strengthen the legal management system. Additional topics included provisions of the RFCTLARR Act, 2013, utility shifting best practices and forest, environmental and statutory clearances.
Officials were encouraged to engage actively in capacity building sessions to enhance institutional effectiveness and informed decision making. The event concluded with an interactive panel discussion that enabled direct engagement with subject matter experts through an open house format. The workshop marked a step towards a holistic and integrated approach to national highway development aligned with the Government of India's vision of building a world class network.