With elections round the corner and BJP planning to highlight lack of development in UP as an election plank, the Union government has woken up to repair national highways, which will start made from eastern UP.
“Union Surface Transport minister Nitin Gadkari will lay the foundation stone for repair of four lane roads in Gorakhpur and Ballia on Wednesday. He will also address a public meeting and speak on Surface Transport ministry’s plans to construct national highways in UP,” BJP spokesman Hrishchandra Srivastava said.
Incidentally, the Union government is facing flak over condition of national highways in UP. The Akhilesh Yadav government has decided to put up boards saying that NHAI roads are not maintained by the Union government properly.
Yadav had even said that if theCentre can not maintain the highways, it should hand over these roads to the state government for carrying out maintenance.
At a recent meeting, Chief Secretary Deepak Singhal had voiced concern over the poor maintenance of national highways. He wrote to Secretary, Union Surface Transport ministry highlighting the state of roads in UP.
The BJP spokesman said that the Union government was not forced by the UP government’s aggressive posturing to start repair work in national highways.
“Gadkari sahib’s visit was long awaited. It has nothing to do with the state government’s pressure or forthcoming elections. The national highways need repair and the Union minister will inaugurate the repair work,” he said.