3 min readFeb 15, 2026 12:18 PM IST
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs Friday approved the rehabilitation and upgradation of the Ghoti-Trimbak (Mokhada)-Jawhar-Manor-Palghar (Nashik to Palghar) stretch of National Highway 160A in Maharashtra’s Nashik at a capital cost of Rs 3,320.38 crore.
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Chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the panel cleared the 154.635-km project to be executed under the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) mode. The highway will be developed as a two-lane corridor with paved shoulders, with select urban stretches, particularly between Manor and Palghar, widened to four lanes.
The approval comes amid rising traffic pressure on key arterial roads feeding Nashik’s industrial clusters at Ambad and Satpur. Freight traffic currently enters the city via NH-848 and NH-60, both operating near their Level of Service (LOS) C thresholds.
Officials said the upgraded NH-160A will serve as an alternative route, allowing vehicles from Mumbai and southern Maharashtra to bypass Nashik. Traffic is expected to move through the Mumbai–Nagpur Samruddhi Mahamarg up to Igatpuri, connect to NH-848 till Ghoti, and then take NH-160A towards Trimbak and Nashik.
Government estimates suggest that by 2028, daily traffic on parts of the corridor will exceed 10,000 Passenger Car Units (PCUs), meeting the threshold for four-laning.
The stretch west of Trimbak will connect NH-160A to the Delhi–Mumbai Expressway and National Highway 48, and extend to the western coastal belt. While traffic between Trimbak and Manor currently stands at about 4,300 PCUs per day, the Manor–Palghar segment carries over 12,000 PCUs daily and will be widened to ease congestion in built-up areas.
The Centre said the project aligns with the PM GatiShakti framework and will link economic zones, industrial estates, railway stations, airports and ports in the region. It is also expected to improve connectivity to tribal areas in Palghar district.
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The government estimates the project will generate nearly 20 lakh person-days of direct employment and close to 25 lakh person-days of indirect employment. Officials said the improved corridor would reduce travel time and vehicle operating costs, while strengthening freight movement between northern Maharashtra, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and the coastal belt.
Once completed, the project is expected to ease urban congestion in Nashik and provide a more seamless link between key expressways and industrial hubs in the state.
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