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NHAI’s public InvIT wins five highway concessions

February 09, 2026 4 min read Economics Polity & Governance GS3
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What Happened

  • NHAI's public Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) — Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust (RIIT) — has won five national highway concessions spanning approximately 260 kilometres across four states, valued at Rs 9,500 crore.
  • The monetised assets include highway sections in Jharkhand (Gorhar-Barwa Adda, 80.52 km), Andhra Pradesh (Chilakaluripet-Vijayawada, 69.4 km), Tamil Nadu (Chennai Bypass, 32.6 km; Chennai-Tada, 33 km), and Karnataka (Nelamangala-Tumakuru, 44.6 km).
  • NHAI plans to provide additional assets of approximately 1,500 kilometres to RIIT over the next three to five years.
  • SEBI has granted in-principle approval for RIIT's registration as a public InvIT, allowing retail investor participation with minimum investments as low as Rs 10,000.

Static Topic Bridges

Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) — Regulatory Framework

An InvIT is a collective investment vehicle similar to a mutual fund that enables investment in infrastructure projects. Regulated by SEBI under the SEBI (Infrastructure Investment Trusts) Regulations, 2014 (amended 2023), InvITs allow infrastructure developers to monetise operational assets by transferring them to the trust and distributing toll/revenue income to unitholders. InvITs can be publicly listed (for retail participation, minimum investment Rs 10,000-15,000) or privately placed (minimum Rs 1 crore). India's InvIT market includes entities from road, telecom, power transmission, and gas pipeline sectors.

  • Regulatory framework: SEBI (InvIT) Regulations, 2014
  • Types: public (listed, retail) and private (institutional investors)
  • Minimum investment (public InvIT): as low as Rs 10,000
  • Distribution requirement: InvITs must distribute at least 90% of net cash flows to unitholders
  • Tax treatment: distributions from InvITs have specific tax provisions under the Income-tax Act
  • Existing InvITs in India: IRB InvIT, India Grid Trust (power), IndiGrid, Brookfield India REIT (analogous)

Connection to this news: RIIT is India's first government-sponsored public InvIT for highways, marking a shift from private-sector-led InvITs. Its public listing with a Rs 10,000 minimum investment democratises access to infrastructure returns that were previously available only to institutional investors.

National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and Asset Monetisation

NHAI was established under the National Highways Authority of India Act, 1988, and is responsible for development, maintenance, and management of national highways entrusted to it. India has approximately 1,46,000 km of national highways. NHAI uses multiple monetisation models: Toll-Operate-Transfer (TOT), InvIT, and securitisation. The National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) 2021-25, with an estimated aggregate value of Rs 6 lakh crore, identified NHAI roads as one of the largest asset classes for monetisation (Rs 1.6 lakh crore of road assets).

  • NHAI established: 1988 Act (operational from 1995)
  • National highways: approximately 1,46,000 km
  • National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP): Rs 6 lakh crore (2021-25)
  • NHAI road monetisation target under NMP: Rs 1.6 lakh crore
  • Monetisation models: TOT (8 rounds completed), InvIT (RIIT), securitisation
  • NHAI debt: approximately Rs 3.4 lakh crore (one of the highest among government entities)

Connection to this news: The RIIT route allows NHAI to monetise operational assets without selling them outright — the highways remain government-owned, but toll revenues flow to InvIT unitholders. This helps NHAI reduce its debt burden while retaining asset ownership.

National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) and Infrastructure Finance

The National Monetisation Pipeline was launched in August 2021 to unlock value from brownfield (operational) government infrastructure assets. It covers 12 sectors including roads, railways, airports, ports, telecom towers, power, warehousing, stadiums, and mining. The monetisation is structured as a lease/concession (not privatisation) — ownership remains with the government, while the private operator manages and earns returns for a defined period. The revenue generated is intended to fund new greenfield infrastructure under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP, Rs 111 lakh crore over FY20-25).

  • NMP launched: August 2021
  • Estimated value: Rs 6 lakh crore (FY22-25)
  • Sectors: roads, railways, airports, ports, power, telecom, warehousing, mining, stadiums
  • Ownership model: government retains ownership; private operator on lease/concession
  • NIP target: Rs 111 lakh crore greenfield infrastructure investment (FY20-25)
  • Key implementing agencies: NHAI (roads), Railways, AAI (airports), port trusts

Connection to this news: RIIT's acquisition of five highway concessions for Rs 9,500 crore is a significant NMP milestone, demonstrating that the InvIT model can attract retail capital for infrastructure monetisation at scale.

Key Facts & Data

  • RIIT concession value: Rs 9,500 crore for 5 highway sections (~260 km)
  • States covered: Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka
  • Future pipeline: ~1,500 km additional assets to RIIT in 3-5 years
  • Minimum retail investment in RIIT: Rs 10,000
  • National highway network: ~1,46,000 km
  • NMP target: Rs 6 lakh crore (2021-25)
  • NHAI road monetisation target: Rs 1.6 lakh crore under NMP
  • Equity participants in RIIT: SBI, PNB, NaBFID, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDBI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Yes Bank, Bajaj Finserv