Despite the initial slowdown due to Covid-19 induced restrictions, work on the 91.35 km long Gorakhpur Link Expressway in Uttar Pradesh has reached overall progress of 39 per cent.

While clearing and grubbing (C&G) in the main carriageway has completed 99 per cent of the work, earthwork in the main carriageway has reached 59 per cent of the completion level.

Granular Sub Base (GSB) and Wet Mix Macadam (WMM) works on the expressway have reached 34 per cent and 32 per cent, respectively.

Also, Dense Bituminous Macadam (DBM) work has reached 31 per cent, and 265 out of 337 structures on the expressway are complete.

The Gorakhpur Link Expressway begins at Jaitpur in Gorakhpur district, and it ends by merging with the Purvanchal expressway near Salarpur in Azamgarh district.

This expressway will be four lanes (expandable up to six lanes) with six lane-wide structures and passes through Gorakhpur, Azamgarh, Ambedkarnagar, and Sant Kabir Nagar districts.

The approved project cost for this expressway, including land cost, is Rs 5,876 crore.

Gorakhpur, located in the Northeastern part of Uttar Pradesh, is the seat of ancient Goraksha peeth which CM Yogi Adityanath currently heads. In the UP assembly elections held in 2022, CM Yogi got elected as an MLA from Gorakhpur.

Being the seat of power for CM Yogi Adityanath, Gorakhpur has received special attention in terms of infrastructure development.

Besides the Gorakhpur link expressway, the Yogi Adityanth led state government also plans another link road to connect Gorakhpur with Varanasi.

Also, Gorakhpur may become the significant node for another expressway as plans are afoot to build a greenfield expressway from Gorakhpur to Siliguri in West Bengal, passing through districts in north Bihar.

The absence of a direct road connecting Gorakhpur with Siliguri makes it nearly a day to cover the distance between the two cities. With most of it passing through northern Bihar, the proposed expressway will reduce the time and distance between Gorakhpur and Siliguri.

According to some reports, the central government has given in-principle approval for the expressway.