Purvanchal expressway linking Lucknow with Ghazipur in eastern Uttar Pradesh is expected to be completed by the targeted deadline of August next year.
About 10 percent of the physical work and 91.53 percent clearing and grubbing works of the 340.824 km-long expressway have been completed so far.
The expressway will provide a direct link to Delhi via Lucknow-Agra and Noida.
The UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA), the agency implementing the project, has so far acquired 96.06 percent of the land required for the expressway and the process of acquiring the remaining land will be completed soon.
UP Chief Secretary Anup Chandra Pandey along with UPEIDA Chief Executive Officer Awanish Awasthi on Sunday inspected the progress of the project from Lucknow to Azamgarh. The Chief Secretary told the UPEIDA to adhere to the schedule and complete the project within the time frame so that the expressway could be opened for traffic in August next year.
He said the Purvanchal expressway was one of the ambitious projects of the state government and negligence in its execution would not be tolerated at any level.
He asked the UPEIDA to expedite the process for acquiring the remaining land for the project and complete the acquisition by June 15.
The Chief Secretary said the work for shifting utilities like high tension power transmission lines, transformers and other utilities coming in the way be completed by the end of this month. Pandey made spot inspection of the project at Amethi, Sultanpur, Ghazipur and Azamgarh.
Awanish Awasthi said the construction works of the expressway had been divided into eight packages.
The expressway will start from village Chandsarain on Lucknow-Sultanpur national highway and terminate in Haidariya village on NH 31 in Ghazipur district.
The expressway will have six lanes with scope for expansion to eight lanes at any future date.
For the smooth flow of traffic, as per the norms of advance traffic management system, underpasses, inter changes, pedestrian way and toll plaza will also be constructed for the safety of the road users. The UPEIDA CEO said the approved cost of the project was Rs 23,349.37 crore and so far tenders for works of Rs 11,216 crore had been awarded for civil works of all the eight packages of the project.