India has one of the largest road networks in the world with a total length of about 62.16 lakh km. About 85 per cent of passenger and 70 per cent of freight traffic are carried by roads every year. Road transport is relatively suitable for shorter-distance travel.  Road transport in the modern sense was very limited in India before World War II. The first serious attempt was made in 1943 when the ‘Nagpur Plan’ was drawn. This plan could not be implemented due to a lack of coordination between the princely states and British India.

After Independence, when was the twenty-year road plan introduced to improve the conditions of roads in India?

1961

After Independence, twenty-year road plan (1961) was introduced to improve the conditions of roads in India. However, roads continue to concentrate in and around urban centres. Rural and remote areas had the least connectivity by road