New Delhi, Feb. 28: P. Chidambaram today proposed to enhance the budgetary support for the National Highways Development Programme from Rs 9,320 crore to Rs 9,945 crore in 2006-07.

The government has also decided to develop 1,000 km of access-controlled expressways. The sections identified for this are Calcutta-Dhanbad, Delhi-Chandigarh, Delhi-Jaipur, Delhi-Meerut, Delhi-Agra and Vadodara-Mumbai.

The finance minister also announced an accelerated road development programme for the Northeast, at an estimated cost of Rs 4,618 crore. An amount of Rs 550 crore has been provided for this.

He said the National Highway Authority of India will be restructured. “It will be turned into a multi-disciplinary body with the capacity to handle a large number of public-private-partnership projects. New skill areas in planning and quality assurance, standardisation, arbitration, road-safety and R&D will be created.”

Chidambaram said the government intends to award five ultra mega power projects, of 4000 mw each, before December 31. Two will be pit-head projects in Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh, and three coastal projects in Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra.

Chidambaram said for reforms in transmission and distribution of power, the Prime Minister will set up a committee of chief ministers and power ministers. Also, 40,000 more villages will be electrified during 2006-7 and all states have signed MoUs to implement the Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana, he added.

Chidambaram proposed to increase the plan allocation for the department of shipping to Rs 735 crore and said the National Maritime Development Programme has been approved.