Highways: UP's path to become first $1 trn state

Uttar Pradesh (UP), one of India's top state economies, is aiming to become the nation's first $1 trillion economy.

- VIRENDRA SINGH RAWAT

To achieve this ambitious goal, the Yogi Adityanath government is betting on its expansive network of expressways and mega industrial corridors to boost UP's gross state domestic product (GSDP) from its current level of nearly $300 billion.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has dubbed UP as 'Express Pradesh', owing to its extensive expressway projects and the 'speed of governance' under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Since Adityanath took office in March 2017, various expressway projects—either commissioned or still under construction—have a total outlay of ₹80,000 crore.

Among the key expressways, the 340-kilometer (km) Purvanchal Expressway and the 296-km Bundelkhand Expressway were inaugurated by Modi in November 2021 and July 2022, respectively.

Ongoing projects include the 594-km Meerut-Prayagraj Ganga Expressway and the 91-km Gorakhpur Link Expressway, being developed by the UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority.