Bundelkhand Expressway

Bundelkhand Expressway
Map
Bundelkhand Expressway in red
Route information
Maintained by Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA)
Length296.07 km (183.97 mi)
Existed16 July 2022[1]–present
Major junctions
North endKudrail village, Etawah district
South endGonda village, Chitrakoot district
Location
CountryIndia
StateUttar Pradesh
Highway system
State Highways in Uttar Pradesh

Bundelkhand Expressway is a 296 km-long (184-mile), four-lane wide (expandable to six) access-controlled expressway in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India.[2] It connects Gonda village on NH-35 in Chitrakoot district with Kudrail village on Agra–Lucknow Expressway in Etawah district.[3] Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid down the foundation stone of Bundelkhand Expressway on 29 February 2020 in Gonda village, Chitrakoot,[4] and the expressway was inaugurated on 16 July 2022.[5] The expressway will boost tourism to Chitrakoot Dham.

The project was launched in April 2017 by the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath.[6] It is being developed by the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) with a total project value of ₹14,716 crores.[7]

Route

Bundelkhand Expressway will connect Kudrail village on Agra–Lucknow Expressway in Etawah district with Gonda village on NH-35 in Chitrakoot district. It will pass through 7 districts of Uttar Pradesh i.e. (from north to south) Etawah, Auraiya, Jalaun, Hamirpur, Mahoba, Banda and Chitrakoot.[8]

Following is the route of the expressway from Kudrail village (Etawah) to Chitrakoot Dham:

Construction

The construction work of the 296 km-long (184-mile) Bundelkhand Expressway is divided into six packages and awarded to four different contractors. A total of four railway-over-bridges (ROB), 14 major bridges, 268 minor bridges, 18 flyovers, six toll plazas, seven ramp plazas and 214 underpasses will be constructed on this expressway.[9] Its construction cost is around ₹7,766 crores (excluding the cost of Land). The list of contractors is as follows:[10]

Sr. No Package Length in km Contractor
1. Gonda (Chitrakoot)–Mahokhar (Banda) 50.5 Apco Infratech
2. Mahokhar (Banda)–Kaohari (Mahoba) 50.3 Apco Infratech
3. Kaohari (Mahoba)–Baroli Kharka (Hamirpur) 49.0 Ashoka Buildcon[11][12]
4. Baroli Kharka (Hamirpur)–Salabad (Jalaun) 51.0 Gawar Construction
5. Salabad (Jalaun)–Bakhariya (Auraiya) 50.0 Gawar Construction
6. Bakhariya (Auraiya)–Kudrail (Etawah) 45.3 Dilip Buildcon[13]

Status updates

  • April 2017: Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath announces plan to build Bundelkhand Expressway.[14]
  • Aug 2017: Plan announced to connect the expressway to Agra–Lucknow Expressway via Bateshwar.[15]
  • Nov 2017: Work related to route survey is started, which will be followed by preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR).[16]
  • Jun 2018: Due to lack of funds, Government of Uttar Pradesh requests the Government of India to build the expressway.[17]
  • Nov 2018: Government of Uttar Pradesh releases ₹ 640 crores for land acquisition.[18]
  • Dec 2018: Land acquisition started. The plan is to complete land acquisition in 2 months. Construction work to begin after 80% of the required land is acquired.[19]
  • Feb 2019: DPR prepared and 27% of required land has been acquired.[7]
  • May 2019: 60% of required land has been acquired. Bidding process to start after Lok Sabha Model Code of Conduct.[20]
  • Jun 2019: 79% of required land has been acquired.[21]
  • July 2019: ₹ 1,150 crore budget booster given for the expressway.[22]
  • Aug 2019: 90% of required land has been acquired. Construction work to start in October 2019.[23]
  • Oct 2019: Construction work of the expressway is divided into 6 packages. The government of Uttar Pradesh shortlisted 4 private firms for developing the expressway.[24]
  • Jan 2020: The construction work of all 6 packages started by contractors, but, the pace of construction work is going slow in Mahoba district.[25]
  • Feb 2020: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation of the expressway on 29 February in Chitrakoot.[26] 95% land is acquired, 2% of soil work completed.[27]
  • Apr 2020: Road construction work which was halted due to COVID-19, resumes in 3 out of 6 packages.[28]
  • Jun 2020: The expressway will pass through 182 villages across 7 districts. 3,483 out of 3,654 hectares (95.32%) of required land has been acquired until 15 June.[29]
  • Aug 2020: 14% of construction work completed ahead of schedule.[30]
  • May 2021: 90% of the earthworks and 60% of construction work completed. 581 out of total 818 structures completed as of 31 May.[31][32]
  • Aug 2021: 71% of construction work and 704 out of total 880 structures completed as of 31 August.[33]
  • Sep 2021: The expressway's section from Etawah to Jalaun is almost completed, and is expected to become operational by December 2021.[34]
  • Oct 2021: Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) completes over 73% of construction work of the expressway.[35]
  • Jan 2022: 100% of earthwork and 820 structures out of 881 structures are completed, overall 83.30% of construction work of the expressway has been completed.[36]
  • April 2022: 92.58% of construction work and 866 out of 881 structures has been completed.[37][38]
  • May 2022: Over 94% of construction work has been completed.[39]
  • June 2022: Over 96% of construction work has been completed, and the inauguration date is now scheduled to the second week of July.[40]
  • July 2022: Over 98% of construction work has been completed, and the inauguration date is confirmed on 16 July.[41][42]
  • July 2022: On 16 July, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the expressway at an event in Jalaun district.[43]

Controversies

Just within five days of inauguration of the expressway, stretches of road caved deep in at different locations during the first rain on 20 July 2022, resulting in accidents of some vehicles. Several videos went viral on social media, with people blaming and questioning the Government for the poor quality and extent of corruption in construction of the expressway.[44][45][46][47][48][49]

Former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and SP president Akhilesh Yadav also raised issues, sharing a video showing incomplete, under construction parts of the expressway and stating that the hasty inauguration of the half complete expressway gives rise to ‘Chaltaau’ (passable/sub standard) developmental culture.[50][51]

See also

References

  1. ^ "PM Modi inaugurates Bundelkhand Expressway in Uttar Pradesh's Jalaun". Hindustan Times. 16 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  2. ^ "About Bundelkhand Expressway". UPEIDA. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  3. ^ Rawat, Virendra Singh (22 February 2019). "UP hits top gear to acquire land for Rs 14,700 crore Bundelkhand Expressway". Business Standard.
  4. ^ "Bundelkhand Expressway: PM Modi lays foundation stone; must-know facts about ambitious infrastructure project". Financialexpress. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  5. ^ "True social justice is when development reaches villages: PM Modi after opening Bundelkhand expressway". The Indian Express. 16 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  6. ^ "Bundelkhand: Six-lane expressway to Delhi in the works, says CM Yogi Adityanath". 21 April 2017.
  7. ^ a b Rawat, Virendra Singh (22 February 2019). "UP hits top gear to acquire land for Rs 14,700-cr Bundelkhand Expressway". Business Standard India – via Business Standard.
  8. ^ "Uttar Pradesh: Bundelkhand Expressway to get operational by June 2022". The Times of India. 8 April 2022.
  9. ^ "60% construction work of Bundelkhand Expressway is complete". Amar Ujala. 2 June 2021.
  10. ^ "Bundelkhand: UPEIDA inks deal with Bank of Baroda-led bank consortium to fund the project". Financial Express. 26 August 2020.
  11. ^ "Ashoka Buildcon receives LoA for Bundelkhand Expressway project worth Rs 1079.52 crores". Business Standard. 28 November 2019.
  12. ^ "Ashoka Buildcon sets new milestones at Bundelkhand Expressway". Construction Week Online. 28 May 2021.
  13. ^ "Dilip Buildcon bags Bundelkhand Expressway project worth Rs 1,362 cr in UP". Business Standard. 29 November 2019.
  14. ^ "What is Yogi Adityanath's 'six-lane' plan to develop Bundelkhand: All you need to know". 21 April 2017.
  15. ^ "Vajpayee's birth place Bateshwar to be connected to Bundelkhand, Lucknow and Delhi | Agra News". Times of India. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  16. ^ "Work on Bundelkhand Expressway to start from next year: Adityanath". thehansindia.com. 25 November 2017. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  17. ^ Sharma, Aman; Arora, Rajat. "Uttar Pradesh asks NHAI to build Bundelkhand Expressway". The Economic Times.
  18. ^ "Bundelkhand Expressway: UP government looks to expedite work; releases Rs 640 crore for land acquisition". 18 November 2018.
  19. ^ "एक्सप्रेसवे के लिए जमीन अधिग्रहण शुरू". hindi.business-standard.com.
  20. ^ Rawat, Virendra Singh (12 May 2019). "UP aims to finish 2 highways before 2022 polls, steps up Land acquisition". Business Standard India.
  21. ^ Anshuman, Kumar. "Expressway in up: Yogi plans expressway to every region of UP by 2022". The Economic Times.
  22. ^ "Rs 1,150 crore budget booster for Bundelkhand e-way". The Times of India.
  23. ^ "Construction of Bundelkhand Expressway to start in October: UP Govt". Money Control. 20 August 2019.
  24. ^ Rawat, Virendra Singh (26 October 2019). "UP picks 4 developers for 2 Expressway projects worth Rs 20,000 crores". Business Standard.
  25. ^ "DM of Mahoba angry over slow progress on expressway project". Amar Ujala. 27 January 2020.
  26. ^ "उत्तर प्रदेश के चित्रकूट में आज पीएम मोदी 296.07 किलोमीटर लंबे बुंदेलखंड एक्सप्रेस-वे का शिलान्यास करेंगे". NDTV India. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  27. ^ "Purvanchal Expressway likely to be ready by year-end". Hindustan Times. 2 February 2020.
  28. ^ "Uttar Pradesh: Work resumes on key Expressways". The Times of India. 21 April 2020.
  29. ^ "Land acquisition details of Bundelkhand Expressway" (PDF). UPEIDA. 16 June 2020.
  30. ^ "14% work of Bundelkhand Expressway ready before time". Times of India. 25 August 2020.
  31. ^ "60% work of Bundelkhand Expressway completed: CEO of UPEIDA". The Indian Express. 30 May 2021.
  32. ^ "Progress Report of Bundelkhand Expressway (May 2021)" (PDF). UPEIDA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  33. ^ "Progress Report of Bundelkhand Expressway (August 2021)" (PDF). UPEIDA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 September 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  34. ^ "दिसंबर से बुंदेलखंड एक्सप्रेस वे पर सफर कर सकेंगे लोग, जानें- क्या है सरकार का प्लान". ABP News (in Hindi). 7 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
  35. ^ "Over 73% construction work of Bundelkhand Expressway completed: UPEIDA CEO". Hindustan Times. 13 October 2021. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
  36. ^ "UP Expressways Industrial Development Authority progress report" (PDF). upeida.in (in Hindi). 4 January 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  37. ^ "पीएम मोदी जून में करेंगे बुंदेलखंड एक्सप्रेस-वे का उद्घाटन, मंत्री नन्दी ने तय किया 100 दिन का एजेंडा". Hindustan (in Hindi). Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  38. ^ Singh, Surendra (2 April 2017). "bundelkhand: 300-km Bundelkhand e-way to be ready by June, will cut travel time to Delhi by 6 hours: Minister". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  39. ^ "जनता को मिलने जा रहा बुंदेलखंड एक्सप्रेस-वे का तोहफा, पीएम मोदी करेंगे उद्घाटन -अनिल राजभर". zeenews.india.com. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  40. ^ "Bundelkhand Expressway". upeida.up.gov.in. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  41. ^ "Bundelkhand Expressway". upeida.up.gov.in. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  42. ^ Sharda, Shailvee (7 July 2022). "PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate Bundelkhand Expressway on July 16". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  43. ^ "PM Modi inaugurates Bundelkhand Expressway in Uttar Pradesh's Jalaun". Hindustan Times. 16 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  44. ^ "Expressway sunk in rain". Aaj Tak. 21 July 2022.
  45. ^ "Bundelkhand expressway caves in at several places". NDTV. 21 July 2022.
  46. ^ "Bundelkhand Expressway road cave-in". Navbharat Times. 21 July 2022.
  47. ^ "Bundelkhand Expressway: Five days and road caves in, UPIEDA begins repairs". Jagran. 21 July 2022.
  48. ^ "On Fifth Day Of Inauguration Road of Expressway Collapsed, three vehicles met with accident". Amar Ujala. 21 July 2022.
  49. ^ "Even little rain was too much to bear for Bundelkhand Expressway". Patrika. 21 July 2022.
  50. ^ ""Half-Complete": Akhilesh Yadav Targets PM Modi over UP's New Expressway". ndtv. 16 July 2022.
  51. ^ "Ruling BJP inaugurated incomplete Bundelkhand expressway with faulty design: Akhilesh Yadav | Lucknow News - Times of India". TimesOfIndia. 16 July 2022.