The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has decided to integrate drone technology into its project monitoring process, starting from the Detailed Project Report (DPR) stage to enhance transparency and consistency. While drone recording was initially limited to the development, construction, and Operation and Maintenance (O&M) stages of National Highway Projects from June 2021, the DPR stage has now been included.
On November 18th, 2024, NHAI issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to engage agencies for drone imagery recording of National Highways during the DPR, construction, and O&M phases. This addition aims to improve record-keeping and ensure timely completion of projects.
NHAI has already employed two service providers for its drone analytics monitoring system (DAMS), which allows for the remote tracking and monitoring of projects.
The initial appointment will be for three years, with the option to extend it to an additional two years. The system uses high-resolution drone imagery that is processed through Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning algorithms to detect changes in key parameters. This data is then presented through a dashboard across four key areas: under construction, O&M, plantation, and road safety.
To further streamline project monitoring, NHAI plans to standardize drone imagery analysis across its National Highway projects. The monitoring zones are divided as follows: the first zone includes hill states such as Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura. The second zone covers Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, while Delhi, Chandigarh, Haryana, and Rajasthan fall under the third zone. The fourth zone includes Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh. Maharashtra, Goa, Dadra Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu, and Gujarat are combined into one zone, with Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh in the next. Finally, the last zone includes Karnataka, Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala.
