UP's road map for $1 trillion economy

The Adityanath government pushes expressway-led growth strategy, linking infrastructure to industry, jobs, and potentially electoral gains ahead of the 2027 Assembly polls, writes Virendra Singh Rawat

- Virendra Singh Rawat

Uttar Pradesh is pinning its economic hopes on an expansive web of expressways. The idea, as laid out by the Yogi Adityanath government, is to turn these high-speed roads into something more: Full-fledged industrial corridors that can pull private investment, create jobs, and help lift the state's economy closer to the $1 trillion ambition.

To that end, state agencies, including the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA), are drawing up plans to acquire land near key expressways and parcel it out to industry. Clusters focused on sectors like manufacturing and food processing are being proposed along these stretches.

It's an approach that mirrors the government's broader socio-economic strategy—boosting gross state domestic product (GSDP) by building infrastructure in the hinterland, and trying to close the gap between industrial growth and employment generation.

The expressway push has already brought visibility. The successful hosting of the Maha Kumbh in 2025, which drew an estimated 660 million visitors to Prayagraj over 45 days, was held up by the state as a demonstration of how improved surface transport can manage massive crowd movement. Officials also point to smoother freight logistics and a more connected tourism circuit.