Waterway transport between Varanasi-Allahabad, augmentation of internal roads on cards before the event
A Ganga waterway transport between Varanasi and Allahabad will be a reality for the crores of pilgrims thronging the 2019 Kumbh mela, said Union Road, Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari here on Monday.
Addressing the media after a review meeting with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on the status of major infrastructural projects in the state, Gadkari said, "The Allahabad-Varanasi stretch on the Ganga will be connected through waterways, so that people can travel between the cities easily on boats for the next Kumbh mela."
He added that the event is likely to see around 15 crore pilgrims.
While the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) — the implementing authority of the project — will purchase steamers for ferrying pilgrims between the cities, the minister urged the UP government to invite private players for procuring more vessels for the purpose.
Gadkari said work is underway on 1,680-km stretch between Varanasi to Haldia and dredging is being done and three multi-modal hubs are being constructed at Varanasi, Haldia and Sahibganj.
CM Adityanath said work on road infrastructure would also be ramped up before the Kumbh mela, and that the Maha Kumbh mela is held in Allahabad every 12th year and 10-12 crore pilgrims attend the Ardha Kumbh held every 6th year.
"76 kms of internal road will be augmented before the Kumbh mela and a DPR (detailed project report) for the project would be completed by six months," Adityanath told reporters.
Works will also be initiated to construct a six-lane bridge on Ganga at Allahabad, the CM said.
Talking about other ongoing road projects in the state, Adityanath took a dig at the previous Akhilesh Yadav government and said UP had 1.21 km of highways full of potholes, when the new BJP government took oath this year.
Talking about connecting the economically-backward Bundelkhand with the rest of the state through roads, he said for the first time, a six-lane Expressway project for Bundelkhand from Tiruwa to Jhansi via Agra Lucknow Expressway has been approved.
"Six lanes will be built till Jhansi and from there it will be four-lane via Trikoot to Allahabad. A detailed project report on the project will be ready soon," he said.
Besides, a ring road will be constructed to decongest all major cities in UP including Allahabad, Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Bareilly, Kanpur, Muradabad and Meerut, Adityanath said, adding that seven important highways have already been approved for Lucknow.
The CM said the meeting will give a thrust to several stalled road projects and that 73 state highways totalling 6,260 km will be converted into National Highways soon, aside the 15 state highways which are in the pipeline.
He further said every parliamentary constituency of the state will see construction of 6-10 big highway projects from the Central road funds.
"Every village in UP will be connected with major roads," he said.
Talking about other projects, Maurya told DNA that the state is also setting deadlines as advised by Niti Aayog for the development of the state across sectors.
"We are in the process of planning and implementing the targets across the sectors," he said.
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