The Centre will take up ₹1 lakh-crore of road works in Uttar Pradesh in the coming year, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday. This includes ₹45,000 crore of ongoing works in the State.

Gadkari’s announcement came at an event where Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the ₹7,500 crore Delhi-Meerut Expressway.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has set a target to build the highway in two-and-a-half years, official sources said.

Modi, who reminded the gathering that he is an MP from the State, said the government’s policy of five per cent biodiesel blending in transport fuel would boost revenue for sugarcane farmers even if sugar prices fall.

He added that the Delhi-Meerut Expressway project will generate employment for local residents. Earlier, Gadkari also spoke of a road network connecting Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri with Delhi at a project cost of ₹11,000 crore.

Fourteen-lane expressway



Of the four packages for the 14-lane Delhi-Meerut Expressway, the best bidders have been arrived at for two, while the process is yet to be finalised for another two. The expressway will also have bicycle lanes. Welspun Enterprises has won the first package of the project for ₹735.6 crore. Apco Infratech and Chetak Enterprises have become the best bidders for the Dasna-Hapur stretch, which is the third package, for ₹1,019.88 crore.

srivats.kr@thehindu.co.in