Expressing annoyance over the delay in completion of the Ring Road, Defence Minister and local MP Rajnath Singh said the project should have been completed by now. He said the officers responsible for the delay should be sternly dealt with.
Addressing a programme called ‘Namaste Lucknow’ with Rajnath Singh, organised by Lucknow Intellectual Foundation in Nirala Nagar here on Saturday, Singh said that Ring Road is the government’s dream project but it was delayed because of the laxity of some officials.
“Once the construction of the Ring Road is completed, it will ease traffic movement inside the city. People coming from other districts will directly go to the area within Lucknow, thus avoiding traffic jams,” Singh said.
Elaborating on the development work being carried out in the city, Singh said that in the last three years, six flyovers have been built and five new flyovers approved.
“Work is also underway to improve infrastructure at Gomtinagar railway station,” he said.
Earlier during discussions, people talked about the development schemes but also highlighted the increase in prices of essential commodities. “There is no doubt there is inflation and the government is trying to control that. The primary reason for the inflation is the Covid pandemic and ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. It is not only India but also the developed countries like the US and China are also facing inflation. However, we are hopeful that India will turn the tide,” the defence minister said.
He said that since 2014 when Narendra Modi came to power, credibility of India has increased on the world stage. “The whole world listens to what India has to say because they know Modi talks sense. India is currently the sixth largest economy in the world and our dream is to be named in the top 3 economies in the world in the coming 10 years,” he said.
During an interaction with intellectuals, Justice (Retd) SC Verma urged the defence minister to reduce pressure which the state courts are under.
SP Mishra asked Singh to expedite the work of Kisan Path while a senior advocate requested him to get encroachments around the High Court removed. Padmashri Vidya Bindu Singh requested the defense minister to rename Lucknow as Laxman Puri.
Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma, BJP city president Mukesh Sharma, MLA Dr Neeraj Bora, MLC Ramchandra Pradhan and Lucknow University Vice-Chancellor AK Rai were among many intellectuals who attended the function.