ROURKELA: Running behind schedule for several years, the completion target of the 125-km National Highway (NH)-143 between Birmitrapur and Barkote in Sundargarh has further been extended by seven to 12 months. The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has attributed the additional delay to time lost due to the Covid-19 pandemic among other reasons. The target for the entire project, estimated at Rs 1,142.31 crore, had earlier been revised from March 2020 to June 2021.
