Shaktipeeth Mahamarg New Route Map: Know All About Expansion of Nagpur–Goa Expressway Costing 1 Lakh Crore Now

After strong protests from farmers and villagers, the Maharashtra government has rolled out the new route map of Shaktipeeth Mahamarg, also known as Nagpur–Goa Expressway. The Devendra Fadnavis-led state government decided to revise the blueprint of the ambitious project, increasing the length by 54 km. The new plan aims to address concerns raised during the land acquisition process while expanding the scope of the mega project.

The first plan, which was revealed in February 2024, was for an 802 km corridor connecting regions such as Vidarbha, Marathwada, and western Maharashtra, near the Goa border via the Konkan region. Protests, especially in the Kolhapur and Sangli districts of Maharashtra, forced the state government to reroute the previous routes.

In the Shaktipeeth Mahamarg project, the new route map, the express highway will now stretch approximately to 856.765 km from 802.592 km. This has made the total project cost Rs 1 lakh crore, up from the initial cost of around Rs 80,000 crore. The expressway will begin from Digras in Wardha district to Banda in Sindhudurg district. While the previous route map through Wardha, Yavatmal, Beed, and Latur will remain unchanged, modifications have been introduced in districts including Nanded, Hingoli, Parbhani, Dharashiv, Solapur, Sangli, Kolhapur, and Sindhudurg. Satara district has also been included in the project.

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The updated map of the Rs 1 lakh crore mega project will go through around 40 talukas across 13 districts and is designed to improve connectivity to 21 major religious destinations. These include major pilgrimage sites such as Mahur, Tuljapur, Kolhapur, Aundha Nagnath, Parli Vaijnath, Pandharpur, and Ganagapur, and many more.

The journey between Nagpur and Goa, which currently takes around 18 hours, could be reduced to nearly 8 hours via the Nagpur–Goa Expressway.