PM Modi to inaugurate Purvanchal Expressway today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate the Purvanchal Expressway in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. 

The inauguration ceremony will also be attended by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who said that the Purvanchal Expressway would be the backbone of the economy of the state's eastern region.

Calling it "a special day for Uttar Pradesh's growth trajectory", PM Modi said, "this project brings with it multiple benefits for UP's economic and social progress."

The IAF has also organised a 45-minute air show, and multiple landings and takeoffs will be done from the airstrip by Indian Air Force fighter jets in front of PM Modi and CM Yogi. 

Under the 'touch and go' operation, the fighter plane will touch the expressway and then take off. Planes like Sukhoi, Mirage, Rafale, AN 32 will be included in the air show.

The Purvanchal Expressway is constructed at an estimated cost of about Rs 22,500 crore, will connect the state capital Lucknow with the eastern districts, including Mau, Azamgarh, Barabanki, with the major cities of Prayagraj and Varanasi. The 341-km Purvanchal Expressway will originate from Chandsarai village on the Lucknow-Sultanpur highway.

Once it is opened to the public, the travel time from Lucknow to Ghazipur is expected to be reduced from 6 hours to 3.5 hours. 

Additional Chief Secretary Avanish Awasthi said the Purvanchal Expressway is the biggest project of Uttar Pradesh. He said that industrial corridors will be built on both sides, which will have machinery, food processing, dairy-milk development.