We have checked the top 10 longest national highways in India and compared them on various parameters like routes, length, states and maps. These highways are the longest road networks traversing the Himalayas with the coasts and linking major metros, industrial belts and ports. Read below for the complete list of longest national highways in India and the parts of the country they connect.

NH 44 – Longest National Highway In India

NH 44 is the longest national highway in India at 4,112 km, running from Srinagar in Jammu & Kashmir to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. It covers a total of 12 states and 1 union territory, namely Jammu and Kashmir and the states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.

NH 44 was formed by the amalgamation of 7 different national highways, that includes NH1A, NH1, NH2, NH3, NH75, NH26 & NH7. NH44 has been ranked as the 22nd longest national highway in the world.

NH 44 has more than 45 toll plazas and the car toll pricing ranges from ??? 100-200 depending on the state. The speed limit on NH 44’s divided four-lane sections is 100 km/h for cars and 80 km/h for trucks and buses, per NHAI’s Central Motor Vehicles Rules. However, the new Delhi-Panipat elevated section will allow higher speeds similar to an expressway.??

Why is NH 44 the longest national highway in India?

The total length of NH 44 is 4,112 km. NH 44 is the longest highway in India because it merges several previously separate highways (NH 1A, NH 7, NH 26, NH 75, NH 63) into a single continuous stretch under the renumbering system.

NH 44 is usually compared to the US Interstate 90; however, NH 44 passes through varied terrains right from the Himalayas to the tropical coastline.

What is the route of NH 44?

NH 44 runs from Srinagar through Jammu, Pathankot, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Ambala, Delhi, Agra, Gwalior, Jhansi, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Kurnool, and Bengaluru, before terminating at Kanyakumari, connecting the North-South corridor.??

The Bengaluru-Krishnagiri stretch on NH 44 is among the most heavily trafficked segments with over 37,000 vehicles every day.??

Which states does NH 44 pass through?

NH 44 passes through 11 states and 1 union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.??

NH 44 connectivity to these states makes it one of the biggest interstate connectors in India.??

Which major cities are located on NH 44?

Major cities on NH 44 include Srinagar, Jammu, Jalandhar, Delhi, Agra, Gwalior, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Salem, Madurai, and Kanyakumari.

Amongst these cities, Nagpur and Hyderabad include major logistical junctions where NH 44 connects to the major highways. These cities act as major transhipment hubs connecting north-south & east-west freight corridors.

Why is NH 44 important for India’s economy?

NH 44 forms the backbone of the North-South Corridor of the National Highways Development Project connecting major industrial and IT hubs like Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

The Bengaluru???Krishnagiri stretch is also part of the Golden Quadrilateral, and the corridor has driven real estate growth along cities like Nagpur, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru’s Hosur Road belt, home to Electronic City.

NH 27 ??? Second Longest National Highway In India

NH 27 is India’s second-longest highway with a total length of 3,507 km, passing from Porbandar in Gujarat to Silchar in Assam, a primary East-West corridor.??

NH 27 is India???s longest continuous East – West road link that was formed by connecting older highways (NH 8E and NH 8B, NH 14, NH 76, NH 28, NH 31, and NH 37.)??

The national highway has approximately 40 toll plazas with the standard toll charges of ??? 90 – 150 per crossing.

What is the total length of NH 27?

NH 27’s total length is 3,507 km, making it the second-longest of any national highway in India.??

What is the route of NH 27?

NH 27 route starts from Porbandar through Rajkot, Samakhiali, Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Kota, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Ayodhya, Gorakhpur, Muzaffarpur, Purnia, and Siliguri, before ending at Silchar in Assam.??

NH 27 passes through the Siliguri Corridor, it is a narrow stretch that connects mainland India to the Northeast.

Which states does NH 27 connect?

NH 27 passes through 7 different states, including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Assam.

This connectivity makes NH 27 one of the few highways to link western India directly to the northeastern states.??

Which major cities are located along NH 27?

Major cities on NH 27 include Porbandar, Rajkot, Udaipur, Kota, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Muzaffarpur, Purnia, Siliguri, and Silchar.??

NH 27 connects the western part of India to the North-East corridor and this extensive reach makes NH 27 a vital backbone of India???s national highway network.

Why is NH 27 important for East-West connectivity?

NH 27 is the main west-east route on the Indian road network, which connects Gujarat’s ports to Assam’s tea and industrial belt. It connects over 45 cities across 7 states and is often described as India’s financial and logistics pulse for east-west freight movement, particularly for cotton, textiles, and agricultural goods.??

In addition to freight movement, NH27 has improved connectivity between several Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, making regional trade, tourism, and interstate travel significantly faster than before.??

NH 48 ??? Third Longest National Highway In India

The total length of NH 48 is 2,807 km, and it runs from Delhi to Chennai via Mumbai and Bengaluru. It is India’s busiest and third-longest highway.??

NH 48 is also known for carrying the heaviest traffic density in India. NH 48 was formed by merging the older NH 8 (Delhi???Mumbai) and NH 4 (Mumbai???Chennai).

The toll plaza rates on NH 48 have been rising by 4 to 5% annually according to NHAI’s Wholesale Price Index-linked revision policy; for example, the Khed Shivapur plaza on the Pune-Bengaluru stretch now charges ???125 for cars, up from ???115???120. The standard speed limit on NH 48 is 100 km/h for cars on divided sections, while the adjacent Delhi???Mumbai Expressway allows up to 120 km/h.????

What is the total length of NH 48?

NH 48’s official length is 2,807 km, formed by merging the older NH 8 (Delhi???Mumbai) and NH 4 (Mumbai???Chennai).??

The parallel Delhi???Mumbai Expressway is shorter at around 1,350 km for that specific leg, since it follows a more direct alignment.

What is the route of NH 48?

NH 48 runs from Delhi through Jaipur, Ajmer, Udaipur, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Mumbai, Pune, Belagavi, Hubballi, Bengaluru, and Krishnagiri, terminating at Chennai.??

NH 48 connects major commercial & cultural hubs right from North, West and South India. Several stretches on NH 48, particularly Gurugram-Jaipur and Pune-Bengaluru, are undergoing continuous widening and upgradation.????

Which states does NH 48 pass through?

NH 48 covers 6 states and 1 union territory through Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.??

NH 48 is one of the few highways that connects India’s three largest metro economies, which are Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru-Chennai.??

Which cities are connected by NH 48?

NH 48 connects five of India’s largest metro and industrial regions, including Delhi, Jaipur, Udaipur, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Mumbai, Pune, Hubballi, Bengaluru, and Chennai.??

Real estate demand along several of these corridors, especially Gurugram and Pune, has surged the infrastructure upgrades and peripheral decongestion.

Why is NH 48 one of India’s busiest highways?

NH 48 is the primary road link between four of India’s five largest cities and carries a disproportionate share of India’s commercial freight, including the Delhi???Mumbai Expressway corridor running alongside it for part of the route. It’s also a major residential and commercial real estate driver in Gurugram, Jaipur, Vadodara, and the Pune???Bengaluru belt.

NH 52

NH 52 is the fourth-longest national highway in India, running 2,317 km from Sangrur in Punjab to Ankola in Karnataka. NH 52 cuts diagonally across the country and connects Punjab???s grain belt to Karnataka???s coast.??

NH 52 was formed by connecting or merging 9 old national highways that included NH 71, NH 65, NH11, NH3 (including the historic Agra-Bombay Road stretch), NH 211, NH 13, NH 218 & NH 63.??

Toll rates on NH 52 differ depending on the state; for example, the Pend plaza on the Sangrur-Dogal Kalan section in Punjab charges ???95 one-way for cars. The standard speed limit is 100 km/h for cars on divided stretches; for two-wheelers and commercial vehicles (Buses/Trucks) the speed limit is 80km/h on NH 52.

What is the total length of NH 52?

The total length of NH 52 is 2,317 km, with its longest stretch running through Rajasthan.

What is the route of NH 52?

The route of NH 52 starts at Sangrur and passes through Hisar, Fatehpur, Jaipur, Kota, Biaora, Dhule, Solapur, Vijayapura, and Hubballi, before ending at Ankola on Karnataka’s coast.

In the route mentioned above, the Indore-Sendhwa stretch is one of the most freight-heavy segments in the entire country.

Which states does NH52 pass through?

NH 52 passes through 6 states that are Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.??

The route, amongst the states, links two very different agricultural economies, which are Punjab’s wheat belt and Karnataka’s coastal produce trade.

Which cities lie on NH 52?

The cities that are connected through NH 52 are Sangrur, Hisar, Jaipur, Kota, Dhule, Solapur, Vijayapura, Hubballi, and Ankola.??

NH 52 mainly connects North and South India.

What is the significance of NH 52?

NH 52 was formed by combining several older highways, including a segment of the old NH 13. It links the industrial belt of Punjab and Haryana to Karnataka’s western coast, and its Solapur???Hubballi stretch is a major agricultural and cotton trade corridor.

NH 30

NH 30 is one of India’s safest highways, running 2,040 km from Sitarganj in Uttarakhand to Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh.??

NH 30 is known to be one of the safer long-distance highways in India.

Toll and speed norms on NH 30 follow the standard NHAI structure which is 100 km/h for cars, 90 km/h for passenger vehicles, and 80 km/h for heavy vehicles on divided four-lane stretches, with tolls typically in the ???60???120 range per plaza depending on the state.??

What is the route of NH 30?

NH 30 runs from Sitarganj through Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Telangana, passing near Bhadrachalam, Ibrahimpatnam, and Vijayawada.??

NH 30???s central Indian stretch crosses through many mineral-rich and low-density traffic districts.

Which states does NH 30 pass through?

NH 30 passes through six states that include Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.??

This highway corridor is known to link the Himalayan foothills to Andhra Pradesh coast.

Which major cities are located on NH 30?

The major cities located on NH 30 include Sitarganj, Bareilly, Lucknow, Raebareli, Jhansi, Sagar, Jabalpur, Raipur, and Vijayawada-linked regions.??

NH 30 possess through a less number of larger cities when compared with other national highways, which contributes to the low traffic density and congestion.

What is the total length of NH 30?

NH 30 is approximately 2,040 km long and it is known to be a major north-south corridor.????

NH 30 passes through Sitarganj in Uttarakhand to Ibrahimpatnam near Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, passing through Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Telangana.??

Why is NH 30 important?

NH 30 is regarded as one of India’s safest highways due to its relatively simple, low-conflict route design. It also links the central Indian mineral belt of Chhattisgarh to the port city of Vijayawada, supporting industrial and coal freight movement.??

NH 6

NH 6 is yet another one of the longest national highways in India, with a total length of??1,873 km starting from Jorabat, Meghalaya to Selling, Mizoram.??

NH 6 is known to be an all-weather road that passes through India???s wettest regions, near Cherrapunji. NH 6 was formed by merging 4 older highways, which include NH 40, NH 44, NH 154, and NH 54.

The standard NHAI speed limit of 100 km/h applies on divided plains sections, though hilly and ghat stretches through Meghalaya and Mizoram carry much lower safe-driving speeds in practice.??

What is the route of NH 6?

NH 6 begins at Jorabat, Assam (where it meets NH 27) and runs through Shillong, Jowai, Badarpur, Silchar, Kolasib, and Aizawl, before terminating at Zokhawthar in Mizoram on the India-Myanmar border.??

NH 6 is known to be the safest weather-centric highway as it passes through Cherrapunji, one of the wettest places on earth.

Which states does NH 6 pass through?

NH 6 passes through Assam, Meghalaya, and Mizoram. NH 6 is one of the few highways that crosses by 3 major northeastern states directly.??

Which cities are located on NH 6?

Major cities on NH 6 include Jorabat, Shillong, Jowai, Silchar, Kolasib, and Aizawl. Aizawl, the Mizoram state capital, sits near the highway’s southern end.

What is the total length of NH 6?

The total length of NH 6 is 1,873 km. This national highway starts from , starting from Jorabat in Assam and ends at Zokhawthar on the India-Myanmar border in Mizoram.

Why is NH 6 strategically important for Northeast India?

NH 6 is one of the few reliable all-weather roads directly linking Assam’s plains to Meghalaya’s hill capital Shillong and onward to Mizoram, making it a critical lifeline for tea, timber, and logistics movement in a historically under-connected region. It also passes near Cherrapunji, one of the wettest places on Earth, and the corridor has been folded into the Bharatmala Pariyojana for further highway upgrades.??

NH 53

NH 53 is a national highway over 1,781 km that connects two major ports which are Hajira in Gujarat and Paradip Port in Odisha.

NH 53 is well known for a Guinness World Record as NHAI constructed a 75 km continuous single-lane stretch of bituminous concrete road on NH 53 in just 105 hours and 33 minutes.??

NH 53 was formed by amalgamation of old highways, which are NH 6 (Surat???Kolkata), NH 200 (Bilaspur???Chandikhole), and NH 5A (Chandikhole???Paradip)??

What is the route of NH 53?

NH 53 routes start from Hajira through Surat, Amravati, Akola, Nagpur, Raipur, Sambalpur, and Angul, and Paradip Port in Odisha.??

The NH 53 route crosses some of central India’s most forested and hilly terrain, including several ghat sections.??

Which states does NH 53 connect?

NH 53 connects Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and neighbouring corridor regions.????

NH 53 is a key freight link between western textile hubs and eastern mineral and port economies.??

Which major cities are located on NH 53?

Major cities on NH 53 include Hajira, Surat, Dhule, Nagpur, Raipur, Sambalpur, and Paradip-side industrial links.

Nagpur sits at the geographic centre of India and serves as a major logistics interchange along this route.??

What is the total length of NH 53?

NH 53’s official length is 1,781 km. It is also known as the Surat???Kolkata Highway, as it forms part of the AH46 Asian Highway network.????

What makes NH 53 strategically important?

NH 53 links India’s mineral-rich central belt ??? including Chhattisgarh’s coal and steel industries and Odisha’s Angul-Dhenkanal region ??? to two major ports. A 75-km stretch between Amravati and Akola holds a Guinness World Record for the fastest highway construction, completed in just over 105 hours.??

NH 16

NH 16 is a 1,711 km national highway along India’s eastern coastline; it is also called the Kolkata???Chennai Highway.

NH 16 forms the eastern arm of the Golden Quadrilateral, India’s largest highway project.

What is the route of NH 16?

NH 16 starts at Dankuni near Kolkata and runs through Kharagpur, Balasore, Bhubaneswar, Brahmapur, Visakhapatnam, Rajahmundry, and Vijayawada, ending near Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

The coastal alignment of NH 16 closely follows India’s eastern port cities.??

Which coastal states does NH 16 connect?

NH 16 connects 4 major coastal states that are West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.??

The four coastal states on NH 16 together account for a significant share of India’s eastern seaboard trade.

Which cities are located along NH 16?

NH 16 is linked to major cities such as Kolkata, Kharagpur, Bhubaneswar, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, and Chennai.??

Several of these are also major port cities, reinforcing the highway’s freight role.??

What is the total length of NH 16?

NH 16’s official length is 1,711 km, formerly numbered NH 5, and it forms a core segment of the Golden Quadrilateral project.

Why is NH 16 important for trade?

NH16 is the main corridor connecting the costal economic corridors of East and South India through some of the major ports such as Kolkata, Visakhapatnam and Chennai. It supports significant freight movement for agriculture, steel, and petrochemicals from Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

NH 19

NH 19 is a 1,435 km long national highway that connects from Agra to Kolkata, and it is a part of the historic Grand Trunk Road.

NH 19’s uniqueness lies in its heritage as it traces the Mughal-era Grand Trunk Road built under Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century, and today forms part of Asian Highway 1.

NH 19’s toll plazas collectively generate over ???1,000 crore in annual revenue, which funds resurfacing and FASTag infrastructure along the route. The standard speed limit is 100 km/h for cars on divided sections.

What is the route of NH 19?

NH 19 runs from Agra through Kanpur, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Sasaram, Aurangabad, Dhanbad, Asansol, and Durgapur, and Dankuni near Kolkata.

Almost the entire route falls within the Golden Quadrilateral network.

Which states does NH 19 pass through?

NH 19 passes through 4 major states, which include Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal.

This corridor also connects to Nepal and Bangladesh border trade routes via feeder roads.??

Which major cities are connected by NH 19?

NH 19 connects major cities like Agra, Kanpur, Varanasi, Dhanbad, Asansol, and Kolkata.

Varanasi in particular sees heavy tourist and pilgrimage traffic alongside freight movement.??

What is the total length of NH 19?

The total length of NH 19 is approximately 1,435 km. Before 2010, NH 19 was a part of the combined Delhi???Kolkata highway (old NH 2); the Delhi???Agra section is now NH 44.??

How does NH 19 support freight movement?

NH 19 is almost entirely part of the Golden Quadrilateral and carries heavy freight traffic between the industrial belts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand’s coal and steel corridor (Dhanbad-Asansol), and the port city of Kolkata.??

NH 66

NH 66 runs 1,622 km along India’s western coastline, parallel to the Western Ghats.

The primary road artery for India’s Konkan coast, formerly numbered NH 17, and it long predates the Konkan Railway, which only opened in 1998.??

Standard NHAI tolls and the 100 km/h car speed limit apply on divided sections of NH 66, and Kerala’s new toll system is expected to save commuters around ???1,500 crore while providing smoother 80 km/h travel on completed stretches.??

What is the route of NH 66?

NH 66 starts at Panvel near Mumbai and runs through Ratnagiri, Panaji, Karwar, Mangaluru, Kozhikode, Kochi, and Kollam, and eventually ends at Kanyakumari.??

The route hugs the coastline for most of its length, crossing numerous rivers and backwaters.??

Which coastal states does NH 66 connect?

NH 66 connects five coastal states: Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu.??

It also passes through Mahe, which is a district of the union territory of Puducherry.??

Which major cities are located on NH 66?

The major cities traversed by NH 66 are Panvel, Ratnagiri, Panaji, Mangaluru, Kozhikode, Kochi and Kanyakumari.

Several stretches, particularly in Kerala and coastal Karnataka, have seen landslide and road-safety concerns in recent years due to hill-cutting during widening work.??

What is the total length of NH 66?

The total length of NH 66 is approximately 1,622 km. NH 66 was formerly known as NH 17 and is undergoing a major widening upgrade across Karnataka and Kerala.??

Why is NH 66 important for coastal connectivity?

NH 66 links India’s major western ports, including Mormugao, New Mangalore, Kochi, and Vizhinjam. It is a critical corridor for the coastal tourism, fishing, and spice trade economies of Goa and Kerala. It has also fuelled significant real estate demand along Mangaluru, Kochi, and coastal Kerala.??

Comparison of the Top 10 Longest National Highways

The following table provides a quick comparison of India’s ten longest national highways by route, length, and state coverage.??

Key Takeaways

• NH44 remains India’s longest national highway connecting the country’s northern and southern extremes.
• NH27 is India’s primary east-west corridor.
• NH48 is one of the busiest passenger and freight corridors in the country.
• Coastal highways like NH66 & NH16 are important for the development of tourism, port connectivity and trade.
• These highways together reinforce the transportation network of India and stimulate economic development in various parts of the nation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why were India’s national highways renumbered?
In 2010, a rationalised national highway numbering system was implemented in India for easy identification of highways. In the new scheme, the north-south highways are typically assigned odd numbers, the east???west highways have even numbers, and usually the three-digit highways represent branches or spurs of primary highways.

Which is the most expensive national highway in India?
Mumbai-Pune Expressway is the most expensive national highway in India, with toll charges of about Rs 3.40 per kilometre.

Which is the most beautiful national highway in India?
The Manali???Leh Highway (part of NH3) is considered to be the most beautiful national highway in India. The Manali???Leh Highway (part of NH3) is considered to be the most beautiful national highway in India. It offers a scenic route through the Himalayas, featuring snow-capped mountains and high passes.

Which state has more highways in India?
Maharashtra has one of India’s largest national highway networks that covers approximately 18,462 km.??

Which is the longest east-west highway in India?
NH 27 is the longest East-West highway that traverses 3507 km from Gujarat’s West coast to Assam’s northeast of India.

Which national highway is the busiest?
NH 48 is considered India’s busiest road because of the amount of commercial and passenger traffic it handles, linking Delhi to Chennai via Mumbai and Bengaluru.

Who maintains India’s national highways?
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) prepares the policies for national highway development while the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is responsible for the development, upgradation, operation and maintenance of most of the national highways in the country under various public-private partnership schemes.

How are national highways numbered?
In NHAI’s rationalised numbering system adopted in 2010, the numbers of north-south highways are odd in general and even for east-west highways. Two-digit numbers refer to primary highways, and three-digit numbers refer to branch and spur highways of a major highway.

Which is the longest national highway in India?
The longest national highway in India is NH 44, which is 4112 km long and connects Srinagar and Kanyakumari.

Which highway passes through the maximum number of states?
NH 44 traverses through a maximum number of states from Jammu and Kashmir to Tamil Nadu, consisting of 11 states and union territories.

Which highway connects the most major cities?
NH 27 connects the most cities along its route, linking over 45 towns and cities across 7 states on its west-to-east path from Gujarat to Assam.

Which highway is most important for logistics and freight?
NH 48 carries the heaviest freight volume, as it directly connects Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, and Chennai, four of India’s five largest commercial hubs.

Which highway is best for long-distance road travel?
The NH-66 is considered the most scenic long-distance route in the country, stretching from the shores of the Arabian Sea in Goa, through coastal Karnataka and the backwaters of Kerala.

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