PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inaugurated the 594-km-long Ganga Expressway, a mega infrastructure project connecting Meerut to Prayagraj. The PM reached Hardoi district around noon and inaugurated the expressway with the touch of a button in presence of Governor Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, among others. The high-speed corridor is expected to boost connectivity across Uttar Pradesh significantly, while giving impetus to industrial investment, logistics, agricultural marketing and regional balance. Adityanath, in a post on X, said the State’s development journey would gain new momentum with the inauguration of the expressway from Hardoi.

 

He described the six-lane (expandable to eight) expressway as a “lifeline” connecting villages, farmers, entrepreneurs and youth, and said, “it would play a key role in accelerating development and bridging distances”. Union Minister and BJP’s Uttar Pradesh President Pankaj Chaudhary said it is of the longest expressways in the country and a gift of modern infrastructure to the state. The expressway connects 12 key districts of Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Sambhal, Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao, Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh and Prayagraj, it stated. One of its key features is a 3.2-km-long airstrip near Shahjahanpur for emergency landing of Air Force aircraft. The expressway is also equipped with an Intelligent Traffic Management System.