After heading the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for a year, Alka Upadhyaya, in October 2022, was appointed as the Secretary, of the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH). Upadhyaya, an Indian Administrative Officer of the 1990 batch, has been working in India’s road sector for the past ten years. Prior to her appointment as Secretary, of MoRTH and Chairperson, of NHAI, she was the CEO of MP Rural Development; Director General of Rural Road Development Authority and Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Rural Development.
Upadhyaya believes that the economic growth of a nation is closely linked with the growth of the road infrastructure in the country. Under her leadership, NHAI started initiatives like establishing Multimodal Logistics Parks and ‘Wayside Amenities’ to improve the commuter experience on National Highways.
The government has laid out a massive allocation of Rs 10 lakh crore for capital expenditure in this year’s budget. A bulk of it will be directed towards building and strengthening the road infrastructure. As Secretary, of MoRTH, Upadhyaya will be at the helm of affairs and leverage her vast experience in the roads sector to address some legacy issues. She recently stated that the government wants to ensure companies with sound financials build highway projects and is considering putting a minimum BBB rating for bidders in hybrid annuity model (HAM) projects.
Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
