NHAI Launches Internship Program and Dedicated Internship Portal

• 10 Jan 2026
• 267 Views

The National Highways Authority of India, abbreviated as NHAI, has taken a crucial step to nurture future professionals in the country. It has collaborated with Department of Higher Education of the Government of India to launch the NHAI Internship Program. For aspiring professionals, this program serves as a gateway. It allows them to gain real world, hands on experience within the largest National Highway development ecosystem in the country. 

Shri Vineet Joshi, Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education and Shri Santosh Kumar Yadav, Chairman NHAI, launched this program in the presence of senior officials from NHAI, Ministry of Education and AICTE. Additionally, NHAI has introduced a dedicated Internship Portal that will function as an integrated platform offering internship opportunities across over 150 major National Highway projects nationwide. This portal will ensure wider accessibility as well as transparency of the initiative. 

Each project under the program will host up to four interns. It will create an initial pool of nearly 600 students from institutions like IITs, NITs and AICTE affiliated colleges across the country. The Internship Portal offers programs of one month, two months and six months. They’re all tailored to meet various academic as well as industry needs. All selected interns will receive a stipend of Rs. 20,000/month. This stipend would support the students’ learning and mobility as well as help them in their professional development. 

The Ministry of Higher Education has launched the National Education Policy 2020, which promotes experiential learning, industry exposure and enhances employability by providing a flexible curriculum and credit linked internships along with extended internships during the final year of undergraduate programs. 

This internship program aligns with the vision of NEP 2020. It is designed to go beyond mere observational learning. Interns will get a chance to actively engage in all projects they’re involved in. They will gain valuable field experience in both the technical as well as managerial aspects of National Highway development. 

The program will provide in-depth insights as well as hands-on exposure to the planning, engineering and implementation of National Highways on the ground. The primary focus will be given to the civil engineering students. With that being said, opportunities are also available for students belonging to IT, electronics and electrical engineering backgrounds, specifically in advanced areas like electronic toll collection and advanced traffic management systems.

The winter internship offered under the program got an encouraging response and witnessed participation of nearly 250 students. As part of this initiative, a six month internship program for undergraduate engineering students will begin on 19 January 2026. Around 500 applications have already been received for this final year undergraduate internship program. 

The internship program will be extended to postgraduate students as well in the future. This program shows the commitment of NHAI when it comes to skill development of individuals in India. It aims to create an ecosystem that comprises strong talent and prepares the next generation of professionals who can make a contribution to infrastructure development of India.

Source: Press Information Bureau (PIB)