The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has finalised a tentative list of National Highway stretches to be monetised during FY 2026-27 under the Toll-Operate-Transfer (TOT) and Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) models as part of the Centre’s asset monetisation strategy.
According to the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways, the move is aimed at “unlocking value from operational National Highway assets” and mobilising capital for future infrastructure development and highway expansion projects.
The identified highway assets comprise 17 projects with a combined length of 1,692.5 km spread across nine states — Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra.
NHAI said these highway stretches represent “economic and logistics corridors with established traffic potential and robust connectivity significance”.
The authority clarified that the tentative list does not include assets proposed to be monetised through the Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust (RIIT) during FY 2026-27.
According to the ministry, the monetisation exercise is part of the Government of India’s broader strategy to “leverage operational National Highway assets to mobilise capital for further infrastructure development, promote private sector participation and accelerate the expansion as well as modernisation of the National Highway network.”
NHAI said the initiative would also enable “investors/bidders to plan their investments in an efficient manner.”
The monetisation process will be carried out through the TOT and InvIT frameworks, which the authority described as “successful models for attracting long-term institutional investment” into highway infrastructure development.
The authority further stated that the initiative reinforces its commitment towards “developing a modern, resilient, and sustainable National Highway network to support economic growth, enhance logistics efficiency, and provide seamless connectivity across the country.”
Industry experts believe that the monetisation of mature highway assets through the TOT and InvIT routes will help NHAI recycle capital more efficiently while reducing dependence on traditional budgetary support. Under the TOT model, private players are awarded the rights to operate and collect toll revenue from completed highway stretches for a fixed concession period in return for an upfront payment to the authority. The InvIT structure, meanwhile, allows institutional and retail investors to participate in infrastructure financing through units backed by revenue-generating road assets.
Over the past few years, NHAI has increasingly relied on these models to attract long-term domestic and foreign investment into the road sector. The authority has already conducted multiple successful TOT bundles and InvIT rounds, drawing interest from pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and global infrastructure investors.
Officials said the monetisation programme is expected to improve operational efficiency, encourage better maintenance standards, and create additional financial headroom for greenfield expressways and strategic connectivity projects. The identified stretches are located on key freight and passenger movement corridors, making them commercially attractive for investors seeking stable and predictable returns from India’s rapidly expanding transport infrastructure sector.
