New Delhi: Efforts are being made by the government to facilitate road travel in India. For this, the government has done the work of improving the quality of highways, national highways and small roads, but expressways are being constructed for the development of transportation facilities. In the last 23 years, the government has constructed around 23 expressways in the country, but in continuation of the construction of these expressways, another expressway is going to be added soon. It has been reported that the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is soon going to start construction of a new expressway from the city of Kashi, located on the trident of Lord Shankar, to Kolkata. It is also reported that once the construction of this expressway is completed, the journey from Kashi to Kolkata will be completed in just seven hours. It is said that NHAI’s new expressway will provide an alternative to National Highway No. 19, which passes through Bihar and Jharkhand. It is said that the new expressway will start from Kaimur in Bihar, go to Imamganj in Gaya and enter Purulia via Hunterganj, Hazaribagh and Chatrar Ramgarh in Jharkhand.
The new expressway will pass through Jharkhand-Bihar
According to media reports, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will soon start construction of NH 319B, the approved code name for the upcoming Varanasi-Kolkata Expressway. The new expressway built in the country will connect both the cities besides connecting other cities in the region through states like Bihar and Jharkhand. NHAI said the nearly 610 km long expressway will connect four districts of Bihar and Jharkhand before entering West Bengal via Purulia district.
NH 319B will be named Expressway
The National Highways Authority of India last Friday notified the upcoming Varanasi-Kolkata Expressway as NH 319B. The new expressway will provide an alternative to NH 19, which currently serves as the main highway between Varanasi and Kolkata. One of the RCD engineers working on the project said that the land acquisition process will be expedited soon after NHAI gives unique identity.
The distance from Kashi to Kolkata will be reduced by 80 km
It is also reported that the distance from Kashi to Kolkata will be reduced by about 80 km when the construction of the new expressway is completed. Currently, people have to travel at least 690 km to go from Kashi to Kolkata via National Highway-19. The new expressway will be south of National Highway 19 and run parallel to it. It will have a six-lane highway about 610 km long. The expressway will start from Chandauli near Kashi, which will enter Bihar via Chand instead of passing through Mughalsarai and will exit at Imamganj in Gaya after covering a distance of about 160 km.
The tunnel will be constructed in Bihar’s Kaimur hills
NHAI may construct a tunnel in Kaimur Hills, which will be five kilometers long. The expressway will then cross the Sone river at Tilauthu in Sasaram and enter Aurangabad via the Grand Trunk Road. It will then enter Hunterganj in Chatra district of Jharkhand and exit from Purulia district of West Bengal via Hazaribagh and Ramgarh.
The construction of the new expressway will cost Rs 35,000 crore
According to NHAI, the Varanasi-Kolkata Expressway is likely to cost around Rs 35,000 crore. A senior official of the Patna-based NHAI said that the cost of construction may go up as the NHAI has proposed its almost straight alignment. According to NHAI, the upcoming expressway will halve the travel time between Varanasi and Kolkata. Currently it takes around 12-14 hours to cover the distance via NH-19.
How many highways and expressways are there in India?
According to a government of India statistic, India has a total of 599 highways, with a length of about 1.32 lakh km. The longest national highway is NH 44, with a length of 3745 km. It starts from Srinagar and goes up to Kanyakumari. India currently has 23 expressways, which are fully open to traffic. Also 18 expressways are under construction and many of them will be ready soon.
The first expressway in India was opened 23 years ago
About 23 years ago, the first expressway in the country was opened between Mumbai and Pune. Today an expressway is being built between every major state and common people are also going crazy about it. But, have you thought that highways and expressways look similar, but are there any differences between the two? The news of the construction of expressway between Delhi-Mumbai has again started discussion among people.
What do highways and expressways mean?
There are no specific restrictions on entering the highway. You can access it from anywhere. They also cause many accidents. At the same time, access to expressways is very limited. They are built at some height from the ground so as not to be easily accessible from anywhere. The expressway has specific entry and exit points. For example, the first phase of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway, has 8 entry and exit points between Gurugram and Dausa. This is the biggest difference between them.
What is the difference between highway and expressway?
Roads are considered as the backbone of any economy. That is why a lot of attention was paid to road construction even hundreds of years ago. Highways play a major role in this. Highway is also known as Highway and National Highway in Hindi as National Highway. These are the best roads, connecting major ports and cities. Expressways differ from highways or national highways in terms of road quality and facilities available on that route. These are the top class roads in India. Ramps are built to reach them. These include grade separation (removal of roads above or below each other) and lane dividers. While the maximum speed on highways is 100 kmph, on expressways it becomes 120 kmph. This means reduced travel time between the 2 cities.
What is the name of the oldest highway in India?
The oldest highway in India is the GT Road or Grand Trunk Road, built in the 16th century by Sultan Sher Shah Suri of Delhi. This highway starts from Kolkata and goes to Peshawar. It is said to have been built during the reign of Chandragupta Maurya. According to a report, the GT Road from Sonagaon in Bangladesh to Peshawar and Sindh Province in Pakistan-Afghanistan was built by Chandragupta Maurya, the Mauryan ruler of the Magadha Empire in medieval India. Then it was called Uttarpath. This northern route was paved by Sher Shah Suri, Sultan of Delhi in the 16th century. During the time of Sher Shah Suri, this road was also known as ‘Sadke-i-Azam’ or ‘Emperor’s Road’, as it started from Bengal and went to Afghanistan via Peshawar, a distance of about 2500 km. In India, this road passes through Howrah, Burdwan, Panagarh, Durgapur, Asansol, Dhanbad, Aurangabad, Dehri on Sone, Sasaram, Mohania, Mughalsarai, Varanasi, Allahabad, Kanpur, Kalyanpur, Kanauj, Itah, Aligarh, Ghaziabad, Delhi, Ambalana, Jalabad, Panipat, Jalapur, Jalapur, Jalabad, Jalabad. , Jalapur, Jalabad, Jalabad, Jalabad, Jalapur, Varanasi.
