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PM Modi to inaugurate Bundelkhand Expressway in UP
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there will be great industrial development in the region because of the state-of-the-art Bundelkhand Expressway and it will bring more opportunities for the local youth
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 296 km-long Bundelkhand Expressway in a programme organised near Kaitheri village in Uttar Pradesh’s Jalaun district today.
In a tweet on Friday Modi said, “Tomorrow, 16th July is a special day for my sisters and brothers of the Bundelkhand region. At a programme in Jalaun district, the Bundelkhand Expressway will be inaugurated. This project will boost the local economy and connectivity.”
“The state-of-the-art Bundelkhand Expressway passes through 7 districts. The local economy will benefit tremendously due to it. There will be great industrial development in the region and this would bring more opportunities for the local youth,” he added.
The ₹14,849-crore four-lane access-controlled green field expressway will pave way for the development of the backward region of Bundelkhand, said Uttar Pradesh industrial development minister, Nand Gopal Gupta Nandi.
The Bundelkhand region will be directly connected with the National Capital Region (NCR) and the national capital, Delhi, through the Agra- Lucknow expressway and Yamuna expressway. The travel time between Chitrakoot district and Delhi will be reduced to six hours from 10- 12 hours earlier.
Giving details about the inauguration ceremony and the public meeting, Nandi said around one lakh people will arrive by 1,500 buses to attend the event organised near Kaitheri village in Jalaun district.
The Prime Minister will land at Chakeri airport at Kanpur on Saturday morning. From there he will fly on a helicopter to Katheri village in Jalaun district to attend the inauguration function scheduled at 10.30 am. Governor Anandiben Patel and chief minister Yogi Adityanath will accompany the PM, said a state government spokesperson.
In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the health department has made arrangements for the rapid antigen test of the people who will come to attend the inauguration ceremony at various spots near the expressway. To streamline the movement of the traffic, a control room has been established and route chart has been prepared for the movement of the buses and vehicles to the programme spot, Nandi said.
A waterproof pandal has been erected at the spot where the Prime Minister will address the public meeting. The pandal has been decorated with traditional Chetri art of Bundelkhand region. The handmade items of one district one product (ODOP) of Bundelkhand will be presented to the Prime Minister. The administration has built 104 blocks in the pandal to accommodate one lakh people, he said.
The Prime Minister will ride in a jeep to inspect the expressway and he will visit the Digital Gallery.
The expressway will give a fillip to the investments in the upcoming UP Defence Corridor project spread from West and Central UP to the Bundelkhand. The state government has planned to set up an industrial corridor along the expressway in Banda and Jalaun district that will give momentum to regional industries like handloom, dairy, fruit, cotton industry and the other products of Bundelkhand region, Nandi said.
Uttar Pradesh will have an operational network of 1,225 km of expressways after Prime Minister opens the Bundelkhand Expressway. It will be the sixth Expressway in Uttar Pradesh. The five Expressways that are functional include Purvanchal Expressway, Yamuna Expressway, Agra Expressway, Delhi- Meerut Expressway and NOIDA- Greater NOIDA Expressway, he said.
The Prime Minister will inspect the Bundelkhand Expressway and will also plant a sapling after the inauguration. The state government has planned to plant saplings at a distance of 10 meters on both sides of the expressway, he said.
Chief executive officer (CEO), UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA), Awanish Kumar Awasthi said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone of the expressway on 29 February 2020 in a programme organised in Chitrakoot district. The scheduled date of completion of the Bundelkhand expressway was 2023, despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic the expressway has been completed in 29 months.
The expressway starts near Bharatkoop in Chitrakoot district and merges with Agra- Lucknow expressway near Kudrail village in Etawah district. The expressway will pass through Chitrakoot, Banda, Mahoba, Hamirpur, Jaluan, Auraiya and Etawah district, he said.
The expressway will help agriculture, commerce, tourism and industrial sectors in the Bundelkhand region. Entrepreneurs can set up industrial training institutes, educational institutions and medical institutes near the expressway. It will also help handloom industry, food processing, dairy, storage and traditional medium and small-scale industrial units in the Bundelkhand region, he said.
The four-lane expressway, expandable up to six lanes, has four railway over bridges, 14 large bridges, 266 small bridges, 18 flyovers, six toll plazas and 7 ramp plazas. To provide access to the villagers settled near the expressway, service lanes have been constructed in a staggered form, he said.
