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India’s second-largest expressway Ganga expressway in Uttar Pradesh may be ready by this year.

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After having many faced hurdles,primarily due to environmental concerns,the ambitious 602-km Ganga Expressway project has got a new lease of life, with the Uttar Pradesh government setting 2025 as the deadline for its completion. Billed to be the second-largest expressway in the country after the 701-km-long Samruddhi Expressway linking Mumbai and Nagpur, it would connect Meerut, on the western fringes of the state, to Prayagraj on the east, cutting across 13 districts and providing connectivity to major industrial cities, including Meerut, Ghaziabad, Hapur, Amroha, Sambhal, Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao, Rae Bareli, Amethi, Pratapgarh, and Prayagraj.

With Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath asking the UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) to consider linking the proposed expressway to Varanasi, the Prime Minister’s constituency, a second phase of the project has been mooted, which would extend the expressway to Ballia, near the Bihar border. In case the roughly 300-km extension plan materializes, the Ganga Expressway would become the longest e-way in the country (approx. 900 km long), connecting eastern Uttar Pradesh to the National Capital through a string of expressways.

The first phase of the six-lane expressway (expandable to eight lanes) would cover approximately 555 villages of central and western Uttar Pradesh, which is a hub of agricultural and industrial activity. UPEIDA, the nodal agency for the project, has estimated Rs 23,436.88 crore as construction costs. With land acquisition costing another Rs 10,000 crore, the overall project cost has been pegged at Rs 39,298 crore.

UP Additional Chief Secretary and CEO UPEIDA Awanish Kumar Awasthi says the dream project would reduce travel time between Delhi and Prayagraj from the present 10-11 hours to 6-7 hours. “The Ganga Expressway would ensure fast-paced economic development, which the state has long desired. The moment the financials are worked out, work on the expressway will start in earnest”, he says, adding that plans are afoot to get the foundation stone for the project laid around Diwali. “We hope to start construction work by the end of this year,” he adds.

The project would be divided into 12 packages for simultaneous development by concessionaires, who would be selected through a competitive bidding process. “The detailed project report is ready and will be placed before the state Cabinet for approval. The land acquisition process, too, shall start soon,” he says, highlighting that the mammoth expressway would have 292 underpasses, 8 Road Over Bridges, 10 flyovers, 19 interchanges and 137 bridges.

Says an official of UPEIDA, “The Ganga Expressway would revolutionize the state’s economy and bring the national as well as international market closer home,” adding that not only would it provide faster transit to agri and commercial goods from the region and boost exports, but also give a fillip to the travel and tourism industry.

First proposed by a Mayawati government in 2007, the then 1,047-km-long project got stalled when the Allahabad High Court quashed the environmental clearance granted to it in 2009, holding that the alignment of the proposed expressway was too close to the Ganga and would damage its flood plains. Learning from that experience, the Yogi government has reworked the alignment and decided to build the expressway 10 km away from the riverbank.

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Cheers and Cheers: Barzilla’s Joyful Ode to Inclusivity and Celebration

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The RG Marathon Championship Run 2023 in Goa was a testament to inclusivity. Initially resistant to including persons with disabilities, it eventually featured wheelchair and standing categories, thanks to advocates’ efforts. Participants showed exceptional determination, emphasizing unity in diversity. Despite challenging weather, they demonstrated the power of community support, highlighting the need for accessibility and inclusion in all state-level events in Goa.

Following the marathon, a gathering of differently-abled individuals, predominantly wheelchair users, convened for a celebratory lunch at Barzilla. The event, orchestrated by Mr. Shariq Khan and Mr. Zain Aftab, proprietors of Barzilla, honored the birthday of Sadaf Fatima, who also uses a wheelchair and is Mr. Shariq Khan’s wife.

 

The lunch featured esteemed guests including the Tourism Minister of Goa, MLA Rohan Khaunte of Porvorim, Social Welfare Minister Subhash Phal Desai, and the State Commissioner for Persons with Disability in Goa, Guruprasad Pawaskar. The event was impeccably hosted by Ms. Falak Fatima and Mr. Adarsh Parashar, offering activities such as Karaoke and Billiards. The youth of Goa exhibited their unwavering support for the community, making the party an unequivocal success.

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