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North East Road Sector Development Scheme (NERSDS) – 2015 – IMPRI Impact And Policy Research Institute

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Policy Update
Devshi Satish Mishra

Background

The North East Road Sector Development Scheme was launched during the Financial Year 2015-16, to take up rehabilitation, construction, and/or upgradation of the following categories of roads (including bridges on the roads) in the North Eastern Region (NER) in order of priority:

  • Inter-state roads previously built by the North Eastern Council (NEC) and other agencies, which are of vital connectivity for one state, but of little importance for the other state, and hence remained neglected, but with the available formation width of roads
  • Roads in socio-politically neglected pockets of NER
  • Roads required for security or strategic viewpoint, not covered in any other programmes; and Roads necessary from the perspective of market access for agricultural produce, and roads of economic importance on a gap-filling approach.

Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura are covered under this scheme.

Before the launch of this scheme, the NEC (North Eastern Council) had taken up 47 neglected roads in consultation with the respective State Governments for maintenance and rehabilitation. However, owing to funding issues, the majority of the identified neglected roads remained to be taken up for improvement/upgradation, or rehabilitation. The primary objective of this scheme is to take up these neglected inter-state roads.

This scheme was subsumed by the scheme North Eastern Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS) in 2022.

Functioning

Formulation, Appraisal, and Approval

The process for project formulation and approval is as follows:

  • Identification. The empowered committee identifies suitable projects and the appropriate implementing agency.
  • DPR Preparation. The identified agency then prepares the estimates for pre-construction activities and creates a Detailed Project Report (DPR).
  • Project Requirements
    • All projects must include a 4-year maintenance clause within the capital cost.
    • Alternative road construction technologies (e.g., WMM, PCC) are encouraged to ensure longevity and reduce future maintenance.
  • Final Approval. The agency submits the complete DPR and a proposed timeframe to the Ministry. This proposal is then placed before the empowered committee, which recommends the final implementation timeframe along with specific physical and financial milestones.

Release of Funds

The Ministry of DoNER (Department of North Eastern Region) releases project funds by authorizing the concerned Central Ministry, which is affiliated with the implementing agency. The process is managed as follows:

  • Initial Release. The empowered Inter-Ministerial Committee recommends the amount and method for the initial release of funds.
  • Subsequent Releases. After pre-construction activities are complete, further funds are released based on achieving the specific physical and financial milestones and the availability of funds.
  • Maintenance Funds. The maintenance component of the project cost is released only upon physical completion of the work and disbursed annually.

Monitoring & Evaluation

Project oversight is maintained through a two-part process:

  • Quarterly Reporting. The implementing agency is required to submit Quarterly Progress Reports (QPRs) detailing physical and financial progress to the Ministry of DoNER within three weeks of the quarter’s end.
  • Inspections and Audits. Monitoring is also conducted through:
    • Field inspections by officers from the Ministry of DoNER or NEC.
    • Third-party monitoring, social audits, and impact studies by independent agencies, as recommended by the CMC.

Performance

The performance of the schemes is measured by the number of projects sanctioned, completed, and the funds utilized. 

  • Between 2020-21 to 2022-23 (up to February 2023), the funds allocated to NERSDS were ₹670.65. 
  • Under NERSDS, 8 projects worth ₹263.29 crore were sanctioned for Assam, and all 8 have been completed.
  • In Arunachal Pradesh, Margherita-Deomali Road was sanctioned in 2020 with an approved cost of ₹43.57 crores, and the actual cost incurred was ₹42.96 crores. The project was completed. Similarly, Mirem-Mikong-Jonai Road was also completed in 2023, which was sanctioned in 2020 with an approved cost of ₹36.22 crores, and the actual cost incurred of ₹35.71 crores.
  • As of early 2024, 75 out of 77 sanctioned projects were finished, with an expenditure of ₹1283.45 crore against a sanctioned cost of ₹1435.40 crore.

It is difficult to properly evaluate NERSDS because little specific data is available. The scheme was absorbed by NESIDS, and its performance figures are now aggregated with several other subsumed schemes, making them hard to isolate.

Impact

As NERSDS was a scheme focused exclusively on roads, its primary intended impact was to improve physical connectivity. By upgrading neglected inter-state roads and connecting remote, socio-politically isolated pockets, the scheme was designed to:

  • Reduce Travel Time. Provide all-weather connectivity, which significantly cuts down travel time between villages, towns, and district headquarters.
  • Improve Market Access. Enable farmers and local producers to move agricultural produce to larger markets more efficiently, as specified in the scheme’s objectives.
  • Enhance Security and Administration. Improve access for security forces and administration to strategically important or previously neglected areas.

It is important to note that HERSDS-specific data is not abundant, as the scheme was launched in 2017 and it was subsumed by NESIDS in 2022. NESIDS’ specific data is abundant, and it aggregates the impact and performance of all the schemes it has subsumed. Therefore, isolating the impact of NERSDS is difficult. Some reports do mention the impact, but it is not supported by data to prove it. The overall impact NERSDS has seen has already been covered in the aforementioned points. The successful completion of 75 out of 77 projects, such as the key roads in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, confirms that new physical assets were created.

Emerging Issues

  • Earlier evaluations of NERSDS pointed to significant operational delays caused by:
    • Slow land acquisition processes.
    • Lengthy procurement and tendering.
    • Difficult working conditions and short working seasons due to long monsoons.
    • Law and order challenges in certain areas.
  • A primary issue raised in the Rajya Sabha is the slow pace of project implementation and the persistent under-utilization of allocated funds. For example, in the 2021-22 financial year, the Ministry of DoNER had only spent ₹1,514 crore out of an allocated ₹2,755 crore by early March 2022.
  • The Standing Committee (2022) observed that the physical progress of many road sector projects under the North East Road Sector Development Scheme is either at zero or in single-digit percent, in spite of the release of the amount for the project.

Way Forward

Owing to the shortcomings faced by NERSDS, it was subsumed by NESIDS. Recommendations can only be given after a comprehensive analysis of the NESIDS scheme. 

References

About the Contributor
Devshi Satish Mishra is a Research Intern at IMPRI and a student at the University of Delhi pursuing Economics Honours. 

Acknowledgment: The author sincerely thanks the IMPRI team for their valuable support.

Disclaimer: All views expressed in the article belong solely to the author and not necessarily to the organization.

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