Kumar Bahukhandi
Deputy Chief Minister and Public Works Minister Arun Sao presents the department’s achievements and future infrastructure plans during a press conference at the Chhattisgarh Samvad auditorium in Nava Raipur Atal Nagar on Wednesday, August 19, 2026-Photo Credit:channel24inida.com via CG/DPR
Deputy Chief Minister says 1,572 road, bridge and government-building projects received administrative approval over the past two-and-a-half years
Key Factors
- Administrative approval granted for 1,574 projects worth more than ₹12,666 crore
- Record approvals worth ₹9,129.18 crore issued during 2025–26
- More than 5,129 kilometres of roads approved in a single financial year
- Seven new divisional and 12 sub-divisional offices established to improve supervision
- WAMIS platform to integrate project reports, approvals, accounts and monitoring online
- Department working under the guiding principle of “Public Works for Building Chhattisgarh”
Raipur : Chhattisgarh is accelerating infrastructure development under the guiding principle of “Public Works for Building Chhattisgarh”, Deputy Chief Minister and Public Works Minister Arun Sao said during a press conference at the Chhattisgarh Samvad auditorium in Nava Raipur Atal Nagar on Wednesday, August 19, 2026.
Presenting the Public Works Department’s achievements and future plans, Sao said roads, bridges and public buildings formed the physical foundation of the state’s development. The department was working simultaneously to accelerate construction, strengthen administrative oversight and improve the quality and transparency of project implementation.
He said administrative approvals had been granted for 1,572 projects costing more than ₹12,666 crore since the present state government assumed office in December 2023.
Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao addresses the press conference at the Chhattisgarh Samvad auditorium in Nava Raipur Atal Nagar on Wednesday, August 19, 2026. Public Works Department Secretary Mukesh Kumar Bansal (L) , Engineer-in-Chief V.K. Bhatpahari and Additional Secretary S.N. Srivastava are seated alongside him-Photo Credit:channel24india.com via CG/DPR
According to the year-wise figures presented by the department, these approvals cover 1,285 road projects, 245 bridges and 42 buildings.
Between December 2023 and March 2024, administrative approval worth ₹551.42 crore was issued for 80 projects. These included 72 roads with a combined length of 374 kilometres, six bridges and two buildings.
During 2024–25, approvals worth ₹2,590.70 crore were granted for 438 projects. The sanctioned works included 400 roads extending across 1,465 kilometres, 37 bridges and one building.
Sao described 2025–26 as a historic year for the Public Works Department. Administrative approval worth ₹9,129.18 crore was granted for 993 construction projects—the highest annual approval secured by the department in the 25-year history of Chhattisgarh.
The approved works included 754 roads with a total length of 5,129.60 kilometres, 200 bridges and 39 buildings.
During the current financial year, 2026–27, the department had received administrative approval worth ₹608 crore up to August 10. This included 59 roads covering 608.20 kilometres and two bridges.
The Deputy Chief Minister said the expansion of the road and bridge network would improve connectivity between villages, towns, district headquarters and economic centres. Better infrastructure, he added, would also facilitate access to schools, hospitals, markets and government services.
“Public Works for Building Chhattisgarh is not merely a slogan. It represents our commitment to creating infrastructure that strengthens economic activity, improves public services and supports the state’s long-term development,” Sao said.
Digital Monitoring and Stronger Administrative Oversight
Sao said the department had focused not only on increasing the number of sanctioned projects but also on strengthening its administrative structure to improve implementation and supervision.
Seven new divisional offices and 12 sub-divisional offices have been established during the past two-and-a-half years. The expanded field structure is expected to improve monitoring, accelerate decision-making and help ensure that approved projects are completed within their prescribed timelines.
The department is also working to resolve pending compassionate-appointment cases, which Sao said formed part of its administrative priorities.
To simplify procedures and make departmental operations more transparent and technology-driven, the government will shortly introduce the Work and Accounts Monitoring Integration System, or WAMIS.
The integrated digital platform will bring several stages of project management online, beginning with the preparation of Detailed Project Reports and extending to administrative approvals, financial processes, accounts and progress monitoring.
Sao said departmental procedures currently requiring considerable time would become quicker and more systematic after the introduction of WAMIS. The platform would help reduce avoidable delays between the preparation of a project and the commencement of work on the ground.
The system is also expected to create a digital trail for approvals and expenditure, making it easier for senior officers to identify delays, monitor physical and financial progress and hold the responsible officials and contractors accountable.
Sao said the use of technology would improve not only the speed of decision-making but also construction quality and field-level supervision.
The government’s challenge, however, will be to ensure that record administrative approvals translate into completed and durable infrastructure. Sanctioning a project is only the first step; timely tendering, land availability, coordination between departments, quality control and regular maintenance ultimately determine its public value.
The expansion of divisional offices and implementation of WAMIS will therefore be significant only if they lead to faster execution, transparent expenditure and stronger accountability for delays or poor-quality construction.
Public Works Department Secretary Mukesh Kumar Bansal, Engineer-in-Chief V.K. Bhatpahari and Additional Secretary S.N. Srivastava were present at the press conference.
