The recent landslide at Dharali came with little or no warning and was severe - the cause, still not determined. Extreme weather events, once rare, are now a regular feature with heatwaves stretching longer each summer, unpredictable monsoon patterns and flash floods with little warning. As these patterns grow more intense, road infrastructure, designed for stability is now being tested by volatility. While many structures withstand intense heat and precipitation, others reveal cracked highways, submerged roads, damaged bridges, and landslide-prone zones in the hills - signals of rising stress on a system engineered to standards designed prior to the recent onset of extreme weather events.
India's highways are arteries of the economy for tourists, transport and cargo, covering 6.6 million kilometres. They provide employment, boost regional economies, and connect remote villages to urban growth hubs. However, this lifeline is under growing stress, not just from traffic, but from climate change. Over the years, awareness of the need for structural resilience has grown. Is there new technology or greater engineering technique that can counter rising extreme weather events? Some of it is already being deployed and mainstreamed in the States. With projected investments exceeding one trillion dollars in the coming years, there is immense potential for climate-aligned growth. Green construction, smart mobility corridors, sustainable materials, and climate-focused financing are emerging as key themes.
The nature of challenges that Indian roads are exposed to are immense. Spread across regions and seasons, exposure, vulnerability and underlying risk of Indian roads varies dramatically based on geography, climate, and construction methods. The Himalayan belt, including Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, faces landslides and road washouts due to steep terrain, fragile geology, and intense rainfall. In contrast, in summer, the northern plains contend with thermal expansion and dense fog in winter, impairing visibility and safety. Coastal states like Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Gujarat experience salinity-induced corrosion, storm surges, and cyclonic winds. Central India sees pavement cracking from heat stress, while arid western regions battle dust, dry soils, and extreme thermal fluctuations. Meanwhile, urban agglomerations face repeated inundation of roads due to short intense spells of rain and overburdened drainage infrastructure.
This diverse risk landscape demands granular, region-specific strategies. The Mumbai-Pune Expressway focus has deployed slope stabilization using soil nails, retaining structures, and more efficient drainage systems. In Kerala, where floods are a recurring nightmare, the Climate-Resilient Road Reconstruction project upgraded some roads with flood-resistant designs, ensuring inclusive community engagement throughout planning and implementation. In Andhra Pradesh, climate-adaptive surfacing using polymer modified bitumen has helped key corridors withstand extreme temperatures without compromising durability. In the hills of Himachal Pradesh, vegetated geocells can now support slope stability, combining the strength of engineered solutions with the natural hold of rooted vegetation.
These examples are part of a broader, quieter transformation across the country. Maharashtra has implemented a policy promoting the use of fly ash in road construction, an approach that boosts durability while reusing industrial by-products. Odisha, frequently battered by cyclones, has re-engineered its emergency evacuation routes using flexible pavement materials and visible signage built to withstand high-speed winds. In flood-affected Assam, elevated bridges and redesigned culverts are ensuring year-round access to remote regions. Other states, such as Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Assam and Gujarat, are laying plastic-modified roads under national schemes. This innovation repurposes waste plastic into road surfacing material, improving pavement strength and life while reducing environmental pollution and enhancing resilience to flooding and heat stress.
National-level greening initiatives are also reshaping India's roads. The Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification and Maintenance) Policy promotes large-scale plantation drives along highways and medians. Central and western states are actively undertaking afforestation along expressways, contributing to microclimate regulation and slope stability. In addition, innovative construction techniques are being scaled up. Warm Mix Asphalt using additives like Evotherm, Thiopave, etc. and Cold In-Place Recycling have been used at selective national and state highways across Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, Maharashtra reducing emissions and energy consumption. Elevated and flexible road structures in cyclone-prone regions reduce the risk of damage during extreme events.
While such measures may increase upfront construction costs, evidence shows they pay off over time. Studies indicate that resilient infrastructure reduces long-term maintenance and emergency repair costs by 25 to 40 percent. Long term results? Fewer road closures meaning fewer supply chain disruptions, reduced logistics costs, and less economic downtime for both public services and private enterprises. This is critical for sectors like agriculture, retail, and e-commerce, where timeliness and reliability are critical to business success.
Systematically viewed, India's highway vulnerabilities stem from a handful of dominant stressors: thermal expansion and cracking, waterlogging due to poor drainage, slope erosion, and infrastructural strain during cyclones or seismic events. These translate into visible symptoms like potholes, cracked pavements, subsided shoulders, and broken embankments. To counter this, the solution set is becoming increasingly sophisticated. Apart from geocells, engineers today are deploying gabions, improved pavement mixes, and high-tech AI-based monitoring and early warning systems that can alert authorities to road fatigue or slope instability before a major failure occurs.
For industries, this conversation is not academic. Every shipment delayed by a washed-out road or a flooded warehouse is a hit to operational efficiency. Every broken link in the logistics chain is a loss of credibility. By contrast, road infrastructure that anticipates disruption and resists damage is a competitive asset. It shortens delivery timelines, improves fuel efficiency, and enhances the predictability that businesses crave in supply chain operations.
Amid rising climate risks to India's extensive highway network, National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), with support from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and the World Bank, is spearheading a landmark initiative focused on enhancing climate resilience in India's road sector. This work includes the study of vulnerable highway stretches, identification of multi-hazard risk zones, and development of cost-effective adaptation solutions within a robust resilience framework so that future roads in these risk-prone segments are built for resilience. Key activities include an in-depth analysis of 2,000 km of National Highways (NH), focused on 30 highly vulnerable stretches across India. This involves comprehensive climate projections, multi-hazard risk modelling and vulnerability assessments of critical highway assets.
The initiative aims to integrate adaptation options into planning and design processes, creating a Climate Adaptation Policy and Guidelines for NHs for coming 70 years, and revise existing codes and manuals to embed climate-resilient practices. NIDM is also preparing frameworks for Transport Emergency Management Plans and Traffic Evacuation Plans during disasters, along with developing toolkits and training modules to build institutional and regional capacity.
[The author is senior Project Associate, National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM)]
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author
