Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Saturday, cautioned the people against what he called a “revari culture” under which votes were sought by political parties by promising freebies and said this could be “very dangerous” for the development of the country.
Addressing a gathering after dedicating the 296-km-long Bundelkhand Expressway to the people, Modi hit out at the previous dispensations in Uttar Pradesh for the lack of connectivity and said the double-engine government was now ensuring major transformation of the state with fast-improving connectivity. He said the distance from Chitrakoot to Delhi by the Bundelkhand Expressway had been reduced by three-four hours, but its benefit was much more than that.
The prime minister laid the foundation stone of the Bundelkhand Expressway on February 29, 2020 and it was constructed in about 28 months.
“This expressway will not only give speed to vehicles but will also accelerate the industrial progress of the entire Bundelkhand,” Modi said.
The prime minister cautioned people, especially the youth, against the “revari culture” and said it could be “very dangerous” for the country’s development.
Revari is a popular sweet of north India.
Under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s leadership, Uttar Pradesh was seeing major transformation with better law and order and fast-improving connectivity, Modi said, and asked people to recall the state of law and order and road connectivity in Uttar Pradesh earlier. He hailed the work being done by the double engine government in Uttar Pradesh.
Bharatiya Janata Party leaders use the term ‘double engine’ to refer to the party being in power at the Centre as well as in the state.
Modi said the path of development on which the country was moving had two aspects at its core — ‘iraada aur maryada’ (intent and dignity).
“We are not only creating new facilities for the present but are also building the future of the country,” he said.
The Bundelkhand Expressway passes through seven districts of Uttar Pradesh and has been constructed at a cost of around Rs 14,850 crore.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath welcomed Modi by offering him a local Bundeli stole at the inauguration ceremony at Kaitheri village in Orai tehsil of Jalaun district.
The Bundelkhand region, considered to be one of the most backward areas of the country, is now going to be directly connected with the national capital New Delhi and state capital Lucknow. The 296-km-long Bundelkhand Expressway is expected to give a fillip to connectivity in the state and boost economic activity.
Now, a distance of 630 km will be covered from Delhi to Chitrakoot at an uninterrupted speed, which includes 296 km of Bundelkhand Expressway, 9 km of DND Flyway, 24 km of Noida-Greater Noida Expressway, 165 km of Yamuna Expressway and 135 km of Agra-Lucknow Expressway.
The Bundelkhand Expressway covers seven districts of Chitrakoot, Banda, Mahoba, Hamirpur, Jalaun, Auraiya and Etawah. Industrial corridors are also being built along the expressway in Banda and Jalaun for which a consultancy agency has been selected. Under the ROW (right of way) of the expressway, about seven lakh saplings are being planted.
Along with improving connectivity in the region, the Bundelkhand Expressway will also give a major boost to economic development, resulting in the creation of thousands of jobs for the local people.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the 296-km-long expressway has been built in merely 28 months — eight months ahead of its set target. The minimum tender in the project was about 12.72 per cent less than the estimated cost, which saved around Rs 1,132 crore to Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA).
The four-lane expressway, developed by the UPEIDA, has scope for expansion to six lanes in the future. It has 13 interchange points. The length of this expressway is 296.07 km and the right of way is 110 metres. A service road is being constructed in a staggered form to facilitate easy movement of the residents of the villages around the project. Four railways over bridges, 14 major bridges, six toll plazas, seven ramp plazas, 293 minor bridges, 19 flyovers and 224 underpasses have been constructed on the expressway.