Gadkari assures ₹50,000–60,000 crore road infra push for UP; Yogi says highways to power state's $1-trillion economy

Uttar Pradesh received a major infrastructure boost on Monday after Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari approved fresh road projects worth ₹50,000-60,000 crore, including proposals to strengthen north-south connectivity, while Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the 63-km Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield Expressway. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and senior state officials were also present at the event.

The newly approved proposals include bypasses for cities with populations exceeding five lakh and four-lane road connectivity to district headquarters.

Although the Lucknow-Kanpur Expressway has been inaugurated, it is yet to be opened for public use pending operational clearances. Once operational, the access-controlled corridor is expected to significantly cut travel time between the state's two largest metropolitan centres while improving passenger and freight movement.

Highway push gathers pace

Calling modern transport infrastructure a key driver of economic growth and seamless connectivity, Rajnath Singh said projects such as the Lucknow-Kanpur Expressway would improve mobility and strengthen the country's infrastructure network. Adityanath said Uttar Pradesh already enjoys robust east-west connectivity through the Purvanchal, Ganga, Bundelkhand, Agra-Lucknow and Gorakhpur Link expressways, and the latest approvals would now bolster north-south connectivity. Describing the newly inaugurated corridor as "not merely an expressway" but a catalyst for faster growth and future prosperity, he thanked Gadkari and Singh for supporting the state's infrastructure expansion.

Gadkari said, "Uttar Pradesh has emerged as a key driver of India's economic growth and asserted that developing world-class road connectivity in the state remains among the Centre's highest priorities." He directed officials to expedite land acquisition, forest clearances and utility shifting, while stating that the visible progress in highway projects reflected effective coordination between the Centre and the state.

Stressing sustainable development, he also advocated transplantation of trees instead of felling them wherever feasible and emphasised that road safety must remain central to every highway project.

₹1.94 lakh crore invested in National Highways

According to the National Highways Authority of India, around 10,204 km of National Highway projects have been awarded in Uttar Pradesh since 2014, with nearly 9,329 km already completed. Between April 2025 and May 2026, 606 km of new projects were approved and 1,010 km completed.

Investments in National Highway projects across the state have reached nearly ₹1.94 lakh crore, including ₹23,445 crore during FY26. Officials also reviewed key projects such as the Mathura-Bareilly-Sitarganj corridor, Kanpur Ring Road, Jewar airport connectivity and the proposed 742-km Shamli-Gorakhpur access-controlled corridor, which are expected to strengthen logistics, trade, tourism and industrial development.

Adityanath said the rapid expansion of road infrastructure would provide fresh momentum to Uttar Pradesh's ambition of becoming a $1-trillion economy, generating new opportunities for investment, industry, agriculture, tourism, trade and employment.