It is now crystal clear (as a newspaper report can be) that the Mapusa-Margao monorail which received GOG cabinet approval in principle recently is going to run along NH-17 i.e. its support columns will follow the divider.
Now, it is widely known that land has been acquired along NH-17 for 6-laning purposes. But the status of this particular exercise is now in some doubt. Then there is the talk about a North-South Expressway. The alignment of this corridor was supposed to have been finalised after a visit of the GOI Minister to Goa. But he postponed his visit due to the disruption at Dabolim during the recent spell of continuous rain. >From the way things look, the monorail (untried and untested in the Indian context) is going to piggyback on NH-17, the existing life line of Goa. There is no information so far about how the project will be tackled, whether in one go or in phases etc. But we may have to be prepared for serious disruptions during and after construction along this critical route. The Expressway may be something else. Let's keep our eyes and ears open on this issue.
