What are National Highways?
National Highways (NH) are main highways running through the length and breadth of the country connecting highways of other countries ,important ports , capitals and district head quarters of states and union territories , important cities and places of strategic importance ,etc.
According to the Ministry of Roads, Transport and Highways (MoRTH), there are 599 National Highways in India. Over a period of time, the numbering of National Highways in India has been renewed. The Ministry has released details of National Highways in the country on its official website.
The total length of National Highways is 132500 Kms.
This Ministry is primarily responsible for development and maintenance of National Highways (NHs). The Ministry keeps on receiving proposals from various State Governments/Union Territories (UTs) for declaration of State roads as new National Highways (NHs). The Ministry considers declaration of some State roads as new NHs from time to time based on requirement of connectivity, inter-se priority and availability of funds.
The declaration of State roads as new NHs are considered based on well established principles; the criteria for State roads for declaration as new NHs include roads running through length / breadth of the country, connecting adjacent countries, National Capitals with State Capitals / mutually the State Capitals, major ports, non-major ports, large industrial centers or tourist centers, roads meeting very important strategic requirement in hilly and isolated area, arterial roads which enable sizeable reduction in travel distance and achieve substantial economic growth thereby, roads which help opening up large tracts of backward area and hilly regions (other than strategically important ones), achieving a National Highways grid of 100 km, etc.
List of Important National Highways in India
| Old National Highway Number | New National Highway Number | Serial No. in NH Act, 1956 | State/ Union Territory through which it passes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NH 1 A and NH 1 D | NH 1 | 1 | Jammu & Kashmir |
| NH 1 B | NH 244 | 144 | Jammu & Kashmir |
| NH 2 | NH 19 ( Golden Quadrilateral) | 63 | Bihar, Delhi, Haryana, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal |
| NH 2 A | NH 519 | 66 | Uttar Pradesh |
| NH 2 B | NH 114 | 40 | West Bengal |
| NH 3 NH 50 |
NH 60 | 188 | Maharashtra |
| NH 223 | NH 4 | 12 | Andaman & Nicobar Islands |
| NH 4 A | NH 748 | 165 | Goa, Karnataka |
| NH 4 B | NH 348 | 161 | Maharashtra |
| NH 5 NH 6 NH 60 NH 217 |
NH 16 ( Golden Quadrilateral) | 49 | Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu |
| NH 7 | NH 41 | 123 | Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh |
| NH 7 A | NH 147 | 131 | Tamil Nadu |
| NH 8 | NH 151 | 157 | Delhi, Haryana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Maharashtra |
| NH 8 A | NH 65 | 139 | Gujarat |
| NH 8 C | NH 21 | 154 | Gujarat |
| NH 8 D | NH 148 | 171 | Gujarat |
| NH 9 | NH 45 | 196 | Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Karnataka |
| NH 11 | NH 40 | 73 | Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh |
| NH 11 A | NH 148 | 158 | Rajasthan |
| NH 12 | NH 45 | 336 | Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh |
| NH 18 NH 4 |
NH 40 | 136 | Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu |
| NH 21 NH 22 NH 95 |
NH 5 | 13 | Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh |
| NH 23 | NH 320 | 71 | Jharkhand |
| NH 24 | NH 530 | 102 | Uttar Pradesh |
| NH 30 | NH 319 | 65 | Bihar |
| NH 35 | NH 112 | 37 | West Bengal |
| NH 39 | NH 129 | 98 | Assam, Nagaland |
| NH 47 | NH 544 | 147 | Kerala, Tamil Nadu |
| NH 47 A | NH 966 B | 205 | Kerala |
| NH 47 C | NH 966 A | 204 | Kerala |
| NH 55 | NH 110 | 34 | West Bengal |
| NH 56 | NH 731 | 110 | Uttar Pradesh |
| NH 79 | NH 156 | 184 | Rajasthan |
| NH 152 | NH 127 A | 87 | Assam |
| NH 38 & NH 153 | NH 315 | 45 | Assam, Arunachal Pradesh |
