“…it is informed that PNC Infratech Limited (the “company”) received a letter from NHAI on 11.09.2026, extending the debarment of Awadh Expressway Private Limited (the “Concessionaire”) for a period of three years, to the company being Promoter of the concessionaire. The company/concessionaire is evaluating legal remedies in the matter,” according to a stock exchange filing.
The company received the NHAI letter on September 11, extending the debarment of Awadh Expressway, the concessionaire, to PNC Infratech as its promoter.
ALSO READ | PNC Infratech emerges L1 bidder for ₹3,483-crore NHAI highway projects in Uttar Pradesh
PNC Infratech and the concessionaire are evaluating legal remedies in the matter, the company said in a regulatory filing. The company will not be able to participate in any bid of MoRTH, NHAI and their executing agencies for a period of three years.
PNC Infratech said the action will not affect its status as a going concern or the execution, operation and maintenance of its ongoing projects. The company said it will disclose any financial implications in due course, as clarity emerges. The debarment extension relates to the action taken by NHAI against the concessionaire and its extension to PNC Infratech in its capacity as promoter.
The development follows NHAI’s action on the Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway project, where Awadh Expressway is the concessionaire. PNC Infratech had said in an August 6 regulatory filing that the company had not been debarred or declared a non-performer by NHAI at that point.
ALSO READ | PNC Infratech accepts ₹235-crore NHAI settlement offer for Agra bypass project
According to a Ministry of Road Transport and Highways press release issued on August 5, NHAI had served a notice proposing to declare PNC Infratech a non-performer, under which the concessionaire would become ineligible to participate in future NHAI bidding.
What happened on Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway?
Awadh Expressway is the concessionaire for the six-lane, upgradable to eight-lane, Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway project from km 28.500 to 73.744 in Uttar Pradesh. The project was awarded under the Hybrid Annuity Model and has a bid project cost of ₹1,513 crore.
PNC Infratech said the project has been completed and is currently under maintenance. Under the concession agreement with NHAI, the concessionaire is required to maintain the project for 15 years after completion, including routine and major maintenance.
Following heavy and incessant rains, certain stretches of the project were affected. The total affected length was around 300 metres, which was less than 0.5% of the entire expressway, according to PNC Infratech’s August 6 filing.
ALSO READ | PNC Infratech bags ₹302-crore order from AAI in Uttarakhand
The concessionaire took immediate measures to repair and rectify the affected stretches. The majority of the affected portions had been repaired, while maintenance work on the remaining stretches was underway. The company also said traffic on the project was plying smoothly.
NHAI subsequently issued show-cause notices to Awadh Expressway. The proposed actions included a penalty of 2% of the performance security, initiation of debarment proceedings against specific technical staff, including the Head of Pavement/Highways, for up to three years, and a downgrade of the concessionaire’s Pavement Condition Index rating.
On Friday (September 11), shares of PNC Infratech Ltd ended at ₹175.35, down by ₹1.80, or 1.02%, on the BSE.
