'Presently, India Does Not Need Driverless Cars'

Union minister for road transport & highways and shipping Nitin Gadkari speaks on the turnaround his ministry has accomplished through innovative decision-making, his progressive agenda and the need for job creation

- Shutapa Paul

Nitin Gadkari, 60, minister for road transport & highways and shipping, has been bolstering the Union government’s development agenda. He claims to have helped banks save non-performing assets (NPAs) worth ₹3 lakh crore, thanks to prompt decisions by his ministry. And while he’s busy chalking out plans to make travel hassle-free for commuters, he is averse to driverless cars in India, he tells Forbes India in an interview. Edited excerpts:

Q What have been your ministry’s key achievements?

When I took charge in 2014, we had 403 projects, including stalled projects worth about ₹3.85 lakh crore. We decided to terminate projects worth ₹50,000 crore. As a result, we saved Indian bankers from NPAs of ₹3 lakh crore; that is a great achievement.

Also, when I assumed charge, road construction was [moving at a pace of] 2 km per day. Last March, it was 23 km per day and the average for the past 4-5 months has been 27-28 km a day. We are working towards making 40 km a day a reality. For the first time, we are constructing express highways and work is moving fast on three of them—Delhi-Meerut and the Delhi easterly and westerly bypasses.