NHAI Mandates 80% Plantation, 90% Survival Rate Along National Highways

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Wednesday issued comprehensive guidelines mandating plantation and landscaping as integral components of National Highway (NH) development and overall project completion. The NHAI said it will ensure that median and avenue plantation is undertaken strictly in accordance with the respective contract/concession agreement and prescribed guidelines issued by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and NHAI.

“Plantation works will be considered compliant for the purpose of provisional completion certification only when plantation has been undertaken on least 80 per cent of the available Right of Way (ROW) earmarked for plantation, with planted saplings recording a minimum survival rate of 90 per cent at the time of inspection by the officials,” the NHAI said. Any plantation shortfall beyond the prescribed 80 per cent threshold must be highlighted along with specific timelines for completion.

“Appropriate financial withholdings, as provided under the relevant Contract/Concession Agreement, will be enforced until the balance plantation is completed and the prescribed target is fully achieved,” said the NHAI. The guidelines also mandate timely plant casualty replacement to ensure sustained plantation density. In cases of plant mortality, replacement shall be undertaken with plants of similar age and growth, thereby maintaining uniformity and continuity of the plantation along the National Highway corridor.

An official statement said that a key provision of the guidelines is the introduction of a minimum threshold for issuance of the Provisional Certificate of Completion (PCC)/Provisional Commercial Operation Date (PCOD). The NHAI had earlier observed that development of plantation along the Median and Avenues, which is a contractual obligation, was often not accorded due importance at the time of issuing PCC/PCOD for National Highway projects. The re-revised guidelines reinforce NHAI’s commitment to integrate environmental sustainability and plantation management into core implementation and maintenance framework of National Highway projects.

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