Purvanchal Expressway: UP

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Why in the news?

Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Purvanchal Expressway.

• It aims at development of futuristic industrial cities in India which can compete with the best manufacturing and investment destinations in the world.

Key highlights:

• Purvanchal Expressway is a stretch of about 341-kms.
• It starts from Chandsarai village,  in Lucknow district and it ends at Haidaria village on National Highway 31 in Ghazipur, 18 km from the UP-Bihar border, in Ghazipur district.
• It is the longest expressway in India.

Features:

• It  comprises a 3.2 km long airstrip at Akhalkiri Karwat village near in Sultanpur district for emergency landing of aircrafts.
• It will have CNG stations, electric recharge stations for vehicles and will be connected with the defense corridor through the Agra and Bundelkhand expressways.
• An industrial corridor is basically a corridor consisting of multi-modal transport services that would pass through the states as main arteries.
•  It is currently a six-lane wide highway and can be expanded to eight-lane in the future.

Background:

• This project was announced by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in May 2015 as Lucknow-Azamgarh-Ballia Expressway.
•  Later, Yogi Adityanath government changed the routes to Lucknow-Azamgarh-Ghazipur. Foundation stone of the expressway was laid July 14, 2018 by Prime Minister Modi. 
• The total project value is Rs 22494 crore. 

About UPEIDA:

• UPEIDA stands for Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority. 
• It was established in 2007 by the Uttar Pradesh government, to develop expressway projects in the state.
• The Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) has been given the responsibility of completing these projects.

Benefits:

• Purvanchal Expressway is going to give a boost to the economic development of eastern parts of Uttar Pradesh, especially the districts of Lucknow, Barabanki, Amethi, Ayodhya, Sultanpur, Ambedkar Nagar, Azamgarh.
• Once it is opened to the public, the travel time from Lucknow to Ghazipur will be reduced from 6 hours to 3.5 hours.
• It establishes a direct link between the NCR and eastern Uttar Pradesh till almost the Bihar border.
• This expressway will prove to be the backbone of Eastern UP.