Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Oct 23: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is set to roll out advanced sensor-based technology to identify potholes, surface cracks, and other defects along more than 20,000 km of highways across 23 States. The initiative aims to enhance commuter safety and comfort while improving the quality of national highways.
According to an NHAI statement, vehicles fitted with modern sensors and data acquisition systems — including 3D laser scanners, GPS trackers, and devices that measure acceleration and angular velocity — will be deployed to capture detailed road surface data.
The collected data will be uploaded to NHAI’s AI-based ‘Data Lake’ portal, where experts will analyse it to generate actionable insights for maintenance, asset management, and infrastructure planning. The information will also be stored in the Road Asset Management System for future technical use.
Data collection will be conducted before the commencement of new road development works and subsequently every six months. The project will cover all highways ranging from two to eight lanes, and NHAI has already invited bids to execute the plan.
NHAI is also working to identify and fix accident-prone “black spots” across the country. Based on reports from State governments, 13,795 black spots have been identified till March 2025, of which rectification work has been completed at 5,036 locations.
Additionally, the Electronic Detailed Accident Report (e-DAR) platform has been developed as a central database for recording and managing road accident data, supporting the government’s efforts to improve road safety and reduce fatalities nationwide.