List of National Highways in India

List of National Highways in India: There are a total of 599 national highways in India. It covers up to a distance of 132500 km. The National Highways are the roads that connect almost every part of the country. The Ministry of Roads, Transport, and Highways is dedicated to improving India’s road network by supplying superior road infrastructure.

National Highways in India is an important topic for UPSC and banking. Candidates looking for UPSC notes on National Highways in India can refer to this article for comprehensive notes and easy revision of the topic. Check the state wise list of National Highways in India below.

National Highways in India

India’s National Highway Authority is responsible for building, renovating, and maintaining the country’s national highways. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highway, which is responsible for all of the highway networks. It controls the National Highway Authority of India. With 2% of the world’s total road length and 40% of all traffic on national highways, India has the second-largest road network after USA.

List of National Highways in India

India has 599 national highways which covers over 132500 kilometers. The majority of India’s road network is made up of national highways. The remaining part is made up of state highways and smaller routes.

The road network in India is divided into five categories: state highways, national highways, rural roads, and expressways. The following table lists all the important National Highways in India:

Sl No.	State Name	National Highway
1	Andhra Pradesh	NH16, NH40, NH65, NH67, NH69, NH71, NH140, NH167
2	Arunachal Pradesh	NH13, NH15, NH27, NH52, NH313
3	Assam	NH15, NH17, NH27, NH31, NH37, NH38, NH39, NH44, NH51
4	Bihar	NH19, NH20, NH22, NH27, NH28, NH30, NH31, NH33, NH83
5	Chhattisgarh	NH6, NH16, NH30, NH43, NH49, NH53, NH130
6	Goa	NH4A, NH17, NH66
7	Gujarat	NH8, NH14, NH27, NH47, NH48, NH53, NH64, NH228
8	Haryana	NH1, NH2, NH8, NH10, NH22, NH71A, NH152, NH334A
9	Himachal Pradesh	NH5, NH20, NH21, NH22, NH70, NH88
10	Jharkhand	NH18, NH20, NH22, NH23, NH33, NH75, NH78, NH80, NH99
11	Karnataka	NH4, NH7, NH13, NH17, NH48, NH50, NH66, NH75, NH150
12	Kerala	NH17, NH47, NH49, NH66, NH85, NH183
13	Madhya Pradesh	NH3, NH6, NH7, NH12, NH12A, NH25, NH26, NH27, NH29
14	Maharashtra	NH3, NH4, NH6, NH8, NH9, NH13, NH16, NH17, NH48, NH50
15	Manipur	NH2, NH37, NH39, NH53, NH150
16	Meghalaya	NH6, NH40, NH44, NH51, NH62, NH106
17	Mizoram	NH6, NH44, NH54, NH54A, NH150
18	Nagaland	NH29, NH36, NH39, NH150, NH202
19	Odisha	NH16, NH18, NH20, NH26, NH49, NH53, NH59, NH63, NH316
20	Punjab	NH1, NH5, NH10, NH15, NH20, NH21, NH54, NH344, NH503
21	Rajasthan	NH8, NH11, NH12, NH14, NH15, NH52, NH58, NH62, NH65
22	Sikkim	NH10, NH31, NH31A, NH717
23	Tamil Nadu	NH4, NH7, NH16, NH32, NH45, NH47, NH49, NH83, NH181
24	Telangana	NH44, NH65, NH163, NH365
25	Tripura	NH8, NH44, NH44A, NH44B, NH208
26	Uttar Pradesh	NH2, NH19, NH24, NH25, NH26, NH27, NH28, NH30, NH31
27	Uttarakhand	NH7, NH58, NH72, NH73, NH74, NH109, NH119, NH121
28	West Bengal	NH2, NH6, NH12, NH14, NH16, NH31, NH34, NH37, NH41

Important National Highways in India – State Wise

Below is the list of all important national highways in India.

State/UT	Old National Highway No.	New National Highway No.
Jammu & Kashmir	NH 1 A and NH 1 D	NH 1
Jammu & Kashmir	NH 1 B	NH 244
Bihar, Delhi, Haryana, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal	NH 2	NH 19 (Golden Quadrilateral)
Uttar Pradesh	NH 2A	NH 519
West Bengal	NH 2B	NH 114
Maharashtra	NH 3 NH 50	NH 60
Andaman & Nicobar Islands	NH 223	NH 4
Goa, Karnataka	NH 4 A	NH 748
Maharashtra	NH 4 B	NH 348
Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal	NH 5 NH 6 NH 60 NH 217	NH 16 (Golden Quadrilateral)
Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh	NH 7	NH 135
Tamil Nadu	NH 7 A	NH 138
Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu	NH 8	NH 48 (Golden Quadrilateral)
Gujarat	NH 8 A NH 8 C NH 8 D	NH 41 NH 147 NH 151
Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana	NH 9	NH 65
Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh	NH 11	NH 21
Rajasthan	NH 11 A	NH 148
Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh	NH 12	NH 45
Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu	NH 18 NH 4	NH 40
Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab	NH 21 NH 22 NH 95	NH 5
Jharkhand	NH 23	NH 320
Uttar Pradesh	NH 24	NH 530
Bihar	NH 30	NH 319
West Bengal	NH 35	NH 112
Assam, Nagaland	NH 39	NH 129
Kerala, Tamil Nadu	NH 47	NH 544
Kerala	NH 47 A	NH 966 B
Kerala	NH 47 C	NH 966 A
West Bengal	NH 55	NH 110
Uttar Pradesh	NH 56	NH 731
Rajasthan	NH 79	NH 156
Assam	NH 152	NH 127 A
Assam, Arunachal Pradesh	NH 38 & NH 153	NH 315

Length of National Highways in India – State Wise

The below table lists the length of national highways of India state-wise:

State	Length of National Highways (Kms)
Andhra Pradesh	6529.5
Arunachal Pradesh	2537.4
Assam	3908.5
Bihar	5030.6
Chattisgarh	3605.8
Goa	292.9
Gujarat	6635
Haryana	3097.6
Himachal Pradesh	2606.9
Jharkhand	3366.8
Karnataka	7334.8
Kerala	1781.6
Madhya Pradesh	8772.3
Maharashtra	17756.6
Manipur	1750.3
Meghalaya	1155.6
Mizoram	1422.5
Nagaland	1547.7
Odisha	5761.5
Punjab	3769.5
Rajasthan	9988.8
Sikkim	463
Tami Nadu	6741.5
Telangana	3795.5
Tripura	853.8
Uttar Pradesh	11736.8
Uttarakhand	2949.3
West Bengal	3664.5

National Highways Authority of India

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is the apex government body responsible for the development, maintenance, and management of national highways in the country. It was established in 1988. NHAI operates under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).

It plays a crucial role in enhancing the connectivity and infrastructure of India’s road network. With a focus on planning, construction, and maintenance, NHAI is instrumental in ensuring the smooth flow of traffic and the overall development of the national highway system.

Numbering System for the National Highways in India

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways formally launched a new National Highway network numbering scheme in the Government of India Gazette on April 28, 2010.

It is a methodical numbering system that takes into account the highway’s orientation and geographical location. This was implemented to provide present and future national highway numbers greater flexibility and uniformity.

According to the recently implemented numbering scheme:

• Every highway that runs north-south will have even numbers that rise from east to west.

• Odd numbers will increase on all east-west oriented highways from the north to the south.

• The numbers on all major highways will either be one or two digits.

• Highways with three-digit numbers are branching off roads or minor routes of a main highway. The primary highway number is preceded by the subsidiary route number. The branches of the main NH44 will be, for example, 244, 344, etc.

• To indicate extremely tiny spin-offs or sections of sub-highways, suffixes such as A, B, C, D, and so on are added to the three-digit sub-highways.

Important Facts about National Highways in India

The following are some quick and important facts about national highways in India:

• India’s national highways are developed, maintained, and managed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), an independent body.

• Any route that the Central Government designates as a national route will be included in the Schedule.

• The creation of National Highways is the responsibility of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

• The Bharatmala Project was initiated by the government to create around 26,000 km of Economic Corridors. These, combined with the Golden Quadrilateral (GQ) and the North-South and East-West (NS-EW) Corridors, are expected to transport the majority of freight traffic on highways.

• The NH 44, formerly known as the NH7, is the longest national highway in India. Beginning in Jammu and Kashmir, the route terminates in Kanyakumari. It travels through several states before arriving in Tamil Nadu, including Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka.

• Formerly known as NH 47A, NH 966 B is the shortest national highway in India. At 8 kilometers, it is the shortest national highway in India, connecting Kochi, Kerala’s Kundanoor, and Willingdon Island.

• Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Chennai are India’s four largest major cities, and they are connected by the national highway network known as the “golden quadrilateral” from all four directions.

• India has 40% of its national highways on its second-largest road network in the world.

• Leh-Manali route is the second-highest motorable highway in the world. It is the second-highest motorable highway in the world. Leh-Manali route connects Shimla and Leh in Ladakh.

Read More

• Largest Railway Station in India
• Largest States in India
• List of Longest Rivers in India

National Highways in India – FAQs

How many National Highways are in India?

India has 599 National Highways, according to the Ministry of Roads, Transport, and Highways (MoRTH). India has periodically updated the National Highway numbered system.

Which is the longest national Highway in India?

NH 44 is the longest National Highway in India with a length of 4,112 km².

Which is the smallest national highway in India?

NH-548 is the smallest national highway in India with a length of 5 km.

What is the new name of NH 17?

Formerly known as NH 17 and a segment of National 47, NH 66 is a heavily used route that extends from Panvel, where it intersects with National Highway 48 (the former NH4), to Kanyakumari. The 1,640-kilometer highway crosses five states: Goa, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu.

How many NH are there in India in 2023?

Currently, there are 599 national highways in India as of 2023, according to the Ministry of Roads, Transport, and Highways’ official report (MoRTH).

Which is the Longest NH in India?

The old NH 7 road, now known as NH 44, is the longest national highway in India. From Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, in the north, to Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, in the south, it travels through the Union Territory. The entire length of the NH 44 roadway is 3,745 km.

What is NH-7 also known as?

The National Highway 7, currently known as NH 44, is the longest in India. It ends in Kanyakumari in the south after beginning in Srinagar in the north. Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu are among the states it travels through.