The decision was taken at a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Currently, connectivity between Chennai, Puducherry Viluppuram and Nagapattinam is dependent on existing 2-lane National Highway 332A and associated state highways. This causes significant congestion due to high traffic volumes, especially in densely populated stretches and key towns along the corridor.
To address these challenges, the project will upgrade approximately 46 km of NH-332A from Marakkanam to Puducherry to a 4-lane configuration, an official statement said.
This will decongest the existing corridor, improve safety, and cater to the mobility needs of rapidly growing towns such as Chennai, Puducherry Viluppuram and Nagapattinam, it added.
The project alignment integrates with 2 major National Highways (NH-32, NH-332) and two state highways (SH-136, SH-203), providing seamless connectivity to key economic, social, and logistics nodes across Tamil Nadu. Additionally, the statement said the upgraded corridor will enhance multi-modal integration by connecting with two railway stations (Puducherry, Chinnababusamudram), two airports (Chennai, Puducherry), and one minor port (Cuddalore), thereby facilitating faster movement of goods and passengers across the region Upon completion, the Marakkanam-Puducherry section will play a pivotal role in regional economic growth, strengthening connectivity between major religious and economic centres, boosting tourism to Puducherry, and opening new avenues for trade and industrial development.
The project will also generate approximately 8 lakh person-days of direct and 10 lakh person-days of indirect employment, and will open new avenues of growth, development and prosperity in surrounding regions, the statement added.
