Monitor News Desk
It will be a unique spectacle to watch. For the first time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will land on the Purvanchal Expressway in a C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft to inaugurate the 34-kilometer-long road.
The expressway is one of the major infrastructure projects to be inaugurated in Uttar Pradesh ahead of elections early next year.
The expressway will connect state capital Lucknow with eastern districts, including Mau, Azamgarh, Barabanki with links to major cities of Prayagraj and Varanasi. The Prime Minister had laid the foundation of the expressway in July 2018.
Immediately after the inauguration programme, an air show will be organized by the Indian Air Force (IAF). A 3.3-km stretch has been developed for allowing fighter aircraft to make emergency landings near the Sultanpur district.
The IAF’s Mirage 2000 and Su-30MKI aircraft would be making multiple takeoffs and landings at the emergency airstrip, which will be watched by PM Modi and other dignitaries.
While some will land on the runway constructed near Kurebhar village in Sultanpur district, others will participate in the touch-and-go operation. A rehearsal was conducted by the IAF on Friday where senior officials were present.
The expressway is part of the government’s plans to develop emergency landing facilities for fighter planes across the country.
According to the Uttar Pradesh government, the 341-km Purvanchal Expressway will originate from Chandsarai village on Lucknow-Sultanpur highway. It will pass through Barabanki, Amethi, Sultanpur, Faizabad, Ambedkar Nagar, Azamgarh, Mau, and terminate at Haldariya village in Ghazipur district.
