It is a rough road that leads to the heights of greatness. And for Santosh Nautiyal, Chairman, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the road to greatness is also paved with equally monumental efforts, hard work and a singular devotion to the cause of providing a lifeline to the nation. In an age, in which a smooth and speedy transportation is key to nation's growth, Nautiyal is among the hundreds of administrative officials who was chosen to fulfill India's dream.

An IAS official of the 1968 batch belonging to the Orissa cadre, Nautiyal is a known name among the administrative circle legendarily famous for his dynamic leadership quality and administrative skills, who has been entrusted the responsibility of completing the vast network of roads connecting different parts of the country. It goes to the credit of Nautiyal and his able predecessors that the prestigious Golden Quadrilateral projects are progressing on a fast track, thereby saving transportation time and fuel to the nation. The responsibility of Nautiyal doesn't end here.

He is again a key person for the maintenance and development of GQ, North South & East West corridors and also providing port connectivity for commercial growth of India.  Looking after India's 3.3 million kilometers of road network, which is the second largest in the world and a lifeline for economic growth is no small task. The roads in India, it's to be noted, carry approximately 65% of freight and 87% of passenger traffic.

Beyond doubt, Nautiyal's contribution to the nation's growth is significant, especially when he has to perform the mammoth task of co-ordinating with country-wide with the developmental work. Nonetheless, for a person like Nautiyal's calibre, hard work and mental agility come naturally to him.  But winning battles against time is not a difficult task for Nautiyal who in his earlier posting as chairman of Food Corporation of India (FCI) performed magnificently and introduced several innovative plans for the public corporation.