UP govt approves ₹1,204 cr to acquire land for expressway link

Officials said that overall, the project is estimated to cost around ₹4,000 crore, and will traverse 56 villages across Gautam Budh Nagar and Bulandshahr districts.

GREATER NOIDA

A 74.3-kilometre access-controlled greenfield expressway linking the Ganga and Yamuna expressways will improve connectivity to the airport, officials said. (HT Archive)

The Uttar Pradesh government has approved a cost of ₹1,204 crore to acquire land for building a 74.3-kilometre access-controlled greenfield expressway linking the Ganga and Yamuna expressways to provide a direct link to the Noida International Airport. The road will link Syana in Bulandshahr and Sector 21 (Film City) in Greater Noida, as per the proposal.

Officials said that overall, the project is estimated to cost around ₹4,000 crore, and will traverse 56 villages across Gautam Budh Nagar and Bulandshahr districts. It is being executed by the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA).

“The corridor is expected to ease connectivity to the airport and improve travel towards the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, Agra and Greater Noida. It will also provide direct link to industrial sectors 28, 29, 32 and 33 in Yamuna City, facilitating smoother cargo movement to and from the airport. The project will bring development to western UP areas, including Bulandshahr and Gautam Budh Nagar. It will ensure smooth connectivity from western UP and Uttarakhand cities with Noida airport,” Jewar MLA Thakur Dhirendra Singh told HT.

Officials said the link road will originate at the 44.3-km mark on the Ganga Expressway, near Syana in Bulandshahr, and merge with the Yamuna Expressway at the 24.8-km point, near Sector 21 (Film City) in Greater Noida. About 20km of the alignment falls within the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) area, including a nearly 9-km elevated stretch.

A 24-metre-wide service road will also be developed to facilitate local movement, officials said. Of the total 56 villages where land will be acquired, eight fall in Gautam Budh Nagar and the rest, including 14 in Khurja tehsil, fall under Bulandshahr.

A letter regarding the fund allocation was issued on February 17 by the state government’s joint secretary to the YEIDA CEO.

“Details of the land survey were sent to the state government. The authority will soon complete the acquisition process and hand over the land to UPEIDA, which will undertake construction,” Shailendra Bhatia, additional chief executive officer of YEIDA.