National Highways in India have become an essence of the road network in today’s scenario as they connect the northern, southern, eastern, and western parts of India with each other. All the credit for this goes to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) which takes care of this road network from its construction to the maintenance. There are about 599 national highways in India which measure around 132,500 km. They not only contribute to the development of the infrastructure of the nation by connecting commercially-rich states and cities but also elevates the Indian economy as well.
With the advent of these highways, now we don’t have to stand in long queues for railway ticket or wait for the ticket confirmation anymore to travel to other states or cities. You just need just hop in your car and take a ride to any of the states and cities without getting jampacked in the traffic. All these factors have made the life of every Indian much easier and faster.
Let’s have a glimpse at the top 10 longest national highways in India connecting the Indian states and important cities-
1. National Highway 44 (Previously called national Highway 7)
The National Highway 44 is the longest national highway in India with a length of 4,112 kilometers running from Srinagar in the north to Kanyakumari in the south. It covers the entire nation and connects 11 states and about 30 important cities with each other. This highway came into being after fully or partially merging seven national highways-NH 1A, NH 1, NH 2, NH 3, NH 75, NH 26, and NH 7. The Central Public Works Department (CPWD) takes care of the maintenance of this highway.
- Total Length- 4,112 km
- Connecting States-Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
- Connecting Cities- Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Ambala, Karnal, Panipat, Sonipat, Delhi, Mathura, Agra, Gwalior, Jhansi, Narsinghpur, Nagpur, Adilabad, Hyderabad, Jadcherla, Kurnool, Anantapur, Bengaluru, Dharmapuri, Salem, Namakkal, Karur, Dindigul, Madurai, Kovilpatti, Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari, Nirmal, Karur.
2. National Highway 27
National Highway 27 sits at the second position in the list of the longest national highways in India. It is 3,507 km long and connects the eastern part of India with the western part. A part of north-south east-west corridor of NHAI, this highway runs from Porbandar in Gujarat to Silchar in Assam. It connects 7 states and 47 cities to each other on a single stretch. NH 27 is considered as the economical pulse of the country.
- Total Length- 3,507 km
- Connecting States-Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam
- Connecting Cities- Porbandar, Bamanbore, Morvi, Samakhiali, Radhanpur, Palanpur, Pindwara, Udaipur, Mangarwar, Chittaurgarh, Kota, Baran, Shivpuri, Ganj, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Faizabad, Gorakhpur, Gopalganj, Pipra, Kothi, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Forbesganj, Araria, Purnia, Dalkola, Islampur, Shiliguri, Jalaiguri, Mainaguri, Dhupgar, Falakata, Sonapur, Salsaguri, Bongaigaon, Bijni, Howly, Patacharkuchi, Nalbari, Guwahati, Dishpur, Nagaon, Dobaka, Lumding, Haflong, and Silchar
3. National Highway 48 (Previously known as NH 4 & NH 8)
National Highway 48 came into existence after adjoining two previous national highways i.e. NH 4 and NH 8. It runs for a distance of 2,807 km and connects the northern states to the southern states. The highway starts from New Delhi and terminates in Chennai. It became the most used highway as it connects the major states and cities to each other. The Delhi-Gurugram expressway, jaipur-Kishangarh expressway, and the Western Expressway constitute a part of this highway.
- Total Length- 2,807 km
- Connecting States- Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu
- Connecting Cities- New Delhi, Gurugram,Rewari, Bawal, Kotputli, Shahpura, Jaipur, Ajmer, Rajsamand, Kishangarh, Nasirabad, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Gandhinagar, Navsari, Vapi, Ankleshwar, Surat, Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Satara, Kolhapur, Belgaum, Hubballi, Davangere, Chitradurga, Bengaluru, Krishnagiri, Vellore, and Chennai
4. National Highway 52
National Highway 52 connects the north of India to the south of India. This 2,317 km long highway begins from the city of Sangrur in Punjab and ends at Ankola city in Karnataka. This highway also shares connectivity with NH-7 near Sangrur and NH-66 near Ankola. The highway is economically beneficial due to its connectivity with the major commercial cities of India.
- Total Length- 2,317 km
- Connecting States- Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka
- Connecting Cities- Sangrur, Dirba, Pattran, Narwana, Hisar, Siwani, Sadulpur, Churu, Fatehpur, Ramgarh, Sikar, Churu, Jaipur, Tonk, Bundi, Talera, Kota, Jhalawar, Aklera, Rajgarh, Biora, Dewas, Indore, Sendhwa, Dhule, Chalisgaon, Aurangabad, Beed, Osmanabad, Solapur, Bijapur, Hubli, and Ankola
5. National Highway 30 (Previously known as NH 221)
The 2,040 km long National Highway 30 starts from Sitarganj in Uttarakhand and terminates at Ibrahimpatnam in Andhra Pradesh. The highway connects with NH 9 at Sitarganj in the beginning and with NH 65 at the end. It is considered as one of the safest highways in India owing to the less number of road accidents.
- Total Length- 1,984 km
- Connecting States- Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana
- Connecting Cities- Sitarganj, Pilibhit, Bareilly, Tihar, Shahjahanpur, Sitapur, Lucknow, Raebareli, Allahabad, Mangawan, Rewa, Katni, Jabalpur, Mandla, Chilpi, Simga, Raipur, Dhamtari, Keskal, Jagdalpur, Konta, Nellipaka, Bhadrachalam, Palwancha, Kottagudem, Tiravuru, Mailavaram, Kondapalle, and Ibrahimpatnam
6. National Highway 6
National Highway 6 offers some amazing and tantalizing view of the mountains as it passes through the north-eastern stretch of India. It is 667 km long and is said to be the backbone of the northeast as it connects Assam, Mizoram, and Meghalaya with each other. This highway shares its connectivity with NH 27, NH 106, NH 206, NH 306, NH 108, NH 2, and NH 102B .
- Total Length- 667
- Connecting States-Meghalaya, Assam, and Mizoram
- Connecting Cities-Jorabat, Shillong, Badarpur, Panchgram, Kolasib, Kanpui, Aizawl, Seling, Lumtui, Neihdawn and Champhai
7. National Highway 53
This national highway is 1,781 km long and passes through the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha. It starts from Hajira in Gujarat and ends in Paradeep Port in Odisha. It is built by making use of the best technology. NH 53 is a segment of the Asian Highway Network 46 in India. It is also known as Surat-Kolkata Highway.
- Total Length- 1,949 km
- Connecting States- Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha.
- Connecting Cities- Hajira, Surat, Vyara, Uchchhal, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nashirabad, Bhusawal, Akola, Amravati, Nagpur, Bhandara, Deori, Rajnandgaon, Durg, Raipur, Arang, Saraipali, Bargarh, Sambalpur, Deograh, Dubri, Chandhikhol, Haridaspur, and Paradip Port.
8. National Highway 16 (Previously called national Highway 5)
This national highway is exceptional in terms of the weather conditions and picturesque scenery. This 1,764 km long highway runs from Kolkata in the east to Chennai in the south, and passes through the states of West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. NH 16 constituted a part of the “Golden Quadrilateral” project as it adjoins the vital agricultural, industrial and cultural hubs of these states. But later on, it was taken over by the “National Highways Development Project”. Total route lengths in every state, West Bengal (208 km), Odisha (529 km), Andra Pradesh (992 km) and Tamil Nadu (42.75 km).
- Total Length- 1,764 km
- Connecting States- West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu
- Connecting Cities- Kolkata, Kharagpur, Baleshwar, Cuttack, Bhubaneshwar, Berhampur, Vishakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur, Chilakaluripet, Ongole, Nellore, and Chennai
9. National Highway 66 (Previously called national Highway 17)
National Highway 66 is one of the most known national highways in India passing through some of the amazing places of India, especially the Western Ghats and frequently passes by the Arabian Sea. This highway covers the northern, southern, and western parts of India. It covers a total distance of 1,640 kilometers starting from Panvel on NH 4 and ending at Kanyakumari.
- Total Length- 1,640 km
- Connecting States- Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu
- Connecting Cities- Panvel, Pen, Mangaon, Mahad, Poladpur, Khed, Chiplun, Sangameshwar, (Hatkhamba (Ratnagiri)), Lanja, Rajapur, Kankavli, Kudal, Sawantwadi, Panaji, Canacona, Margao, Karwar, Kumta, Honnavar, Bhatkal, Kundapura, Udupi, Surathkal, Mangaluru, Uppala, Kasaragod, Taliparambu, Kannur, Thalassery, Vatakara, Payyoli, Koyilandi, Kozhikode, Feroke, Ramanattukara, Tirurangadi, Kottakkal, Valanchery, Ponnani, Chavakkad, Kodungallur, North Paravur, Kochi, Cherthala, Alappuzha, Ambalapuzha, Haripad, Kayamkulam, Karunagappally, Chavara, Neendakara, Kollam, Mevaram, Kottiyam, Chathannoor, Attingal, Thiruvananthapuram, Balaramapuram, Neyyattinkara, Parassala, Marthandam, Nagercoil and Kanyakumari.
10. National Highway 19 (Previously called National Highway 2)
National Highway 19 is the most frequently used and most busy Indian highways. It begins from Delhi and ends in Kolkata. Most part of this national highway belongs to the famous Grand Trunk Road. This highway is a part of the National Highways Development Project. Its total length (1,269 km) is dedicated to the Golden Quadrilateral; a length of 253 km of this highway falling in the middle of Delhi and Agra comes under the North-South Corridor; and the stretch of 35 km of this highway between the Barah and Kanpur falls under the East-West Corridor. NH 19 also forms a part of Asian Highway Network and links Tokyo (Japan) with Istanbul. Each State sharing the length of the Highway between them Uttar Pradesh (655 km), Bihar (206 km), Jharkhand (199 km), and West Bengal (208 km).
- Total Length- 1,269 km
- Connecting States- Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal
- Connecting Cities- Delhi, Faridabad, Palwal, Mathura, Agra, Firozabad, Etawah, Babarpur Ajitmal, Auraiya, Kanpur, Fatehpur, Allahabad, Varanasi, Mughalsarai, Mohania, Sasaram, Dehri on sone, Aurangabad, Dobhi, Barhi, Bagadar, Gobindpur, Asansol, Durgapur, Burdwan, Palsit, Dankuni, and Kolkata
