The 594-km-long Ganga Expressway, whose foundation stone will be laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 18, will pass through one of the most fertile regions of the country and act as an “inherent income multiplier” by promoting agriculture. Bringing in the economy and industrialization in the region, senior Uttar Pradesh officials.
“The part of the Ganga basin through which this expressway is aligned to pass has a rich heritage of agricultural economy. There is also benefit for the establishment of industrial units in the plains of this region. The project will provide the right backbone for the expansion of industrialization of the area,” said a senior official involved in the project. Ganga Expressway will cross 12 districts from Meerut to Prayagraj. It will be built at a cost of over Rs 36,200 crore, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement.
Durgesh Upadhyay, Media Advisor, UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority said that through better connectivity to the expressway, farmers would be able to get better prices for their produce with less wastage. “The increased income of people in this area would then spread to other sectors and businesses, thus furthering the income multiplier effect,”.
Officials said the Ganga Expressway initiative was aligned with the objective of building the project for “national interests” as well as benefiting the region and the state at large. Connected to Lucknow-Agra Expressway and connecting the catchment areas of Kanpur and Aligarh nodes of Defense Corridor, this project will be an impetus towards the upliftment of backward areas of the region.
The connectivity of the expressway is expected to provide faster access to the National Capital Region (NCR) and improve connectivity to freight stations and container depots within the region. “The project will also help in decongesting National Highway 2 (NH 2),” a government official said. Solar energy will also be used extensively to power the project. UPEIDA CEO Avnish Awasthi said that the target is to complete the project by 2025.
Here’s a look at the salient features of PM Modi’s ambitious Ganga Expressway:
- The 594 km long six-lane Ganga Expressway will be built at a cost of over Rs 36,200 crore.
- Once completed, the Ganga Expressway will become the longest expressway in Uttar Pradesh, connecting the western and eastern regions of the state.
- Starting from near Bijauli village of Meerut, the Ganga Expressway will go to Judapur Dandu village of Prayagraj.
- The Ganga Expressway will pass through Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Sambhal, Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao, Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh and Prayagraj.
- A 3.5 km long runway will also be built on the expressway at Shahjahanpur to assist in emergency take-off and landing of Air Force aircraft.
- The Ganga Expressway will help in reducing the travel time between Delhi and Prayagraj to seven hours.
- An industrial corridor is also proposed to be built along the Ganga Expressway.
- Ganga Expressway will also give impetus to many sectors including industrial development, trade, agriculture, tourism etc. This will give a major boost to the socio-economic development of the region.
- The Ganga Expressway was approved on November 26, 2020. This expressway will be ready by 2024.