PM’s address at laying the foundation stone of Ganga Expressway in Shahjahanpur , Uttar Pradesh
Speaker: Narendra Modi
Date: 18 Dec, 2021

Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! I bow down at the feet of Shri Baba Vishwanath and Lord Parashuram. Jai Ganga Maiya Ki. Har Har Gange. Uttar Pradesh’s bright and energetic Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ji, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya ji, my colleague in the Union Cabinet B. L. Verma ji, my colleague in Parliament, Santosh Gangwar ji, ministers in the UP government, Suresh Kumar Khanna ji, Satish Mahana ji, Jitin Prasada ji, Mahesh Chandra Gupta ji and Dharamveer Prajapati ji, my other colleagues in Parliament, colleagues in UP Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council, Panchayat members and my dear brothers and sisters who have come in large numbers! With folded hands, I touch the feet of the brave revolutionaries Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan and Roshan Singh who lit the flame of revolution from Kakori. I am fortunate to put this soil on my forehead which has blessed you. From here only, energetic poets Damodar Swaroop Vidrohi, Raj Bahadur Vikal and Agnivesh Shukla revolutionized the country through ‘veer ras’ poems. This is also the birthplace of Pandit Shri Ram Vajpayee ji, the father of Scout Guide, who administered the pledge of discipline and loyalty. I salute all these great personalities. Friends, Incidentally, tomorrow is also the ‘Balidan Diwas’ of Pandit Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan and Thakur Roshan Singh. These three sons of Shahjahanpur, who challenged British rule, were hanged on 19th December (1927). We all owe a huge debt to such heroes who laid down their lives for the freedom of India. We can never repay this debt. But we can give them the true tribute by working day and night for the development of the country, by building the India that our freedom fighters had dreamed of. Today there is such a virtuous and historical occasion in Shahjahanpur. Today the work on the biggest expressway in Uttar Pradesh – Ganga Expressway – is starting. It is written in Ramcharitmanas : गंग सकल मुद मंगल मूला। सब सुख करनि हरनि सब सूला i.e., Maa Ganga is the source of prosperity and progress. Maa Ganga gives all the pleasures and takes away all the pain. Similarly, Ganga Expressway will open new doors of progress for UP. Today I extend special greetings to each and every citizen of Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Amroha, Sambhal, Badaun, Shahjahanpur, Hardoi, Unnao, Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh and Prayagraj. More than Rs 36,000 crore will be spent on this 600-km expressway. This Ganga Expressway will bring with it new industries in this region, many jobs, many new opportunities for thousands of youth. Friends, Uttar Pradesh is equally large in terms of area as well as population covering about 1,000 kilometres from one end to the other. It requires strength and solid work to run such a huge state like UP and this double engine government is doing exactly that. The day is not far when UP will be recognized as the most modern state with next generation infrastructure. The network of expressways, new airports and new railway routes will bring many boons for the people of UP. First boon: Saving people’s time; second boon: Increase in the convenience of people; third boon: Proper and best utilization of the resources of UP; fourth boon: Increase in the potential of UP; and fifth boon: All-round prosperity in UP. Friends, Traveling from one city to another will no longer take you as much time as it used to. Your time will not be wasted in traffic jams and you will be able to utilize your time. This Expressway, connecting 12 districts of UP, will not only bring eastern and western UP closer, but will also reduce the travel time from Delhi to Bihar. When this Expressway will be ready, a huge cluster of industries will be formed around it which will not only create new opportunities for the farmers and livestock farmers, but will also create new possibilities for the MSMEs and small scale industries here. The immense possibilities that will be created here, especially for the food processing industries, will help in increasing the income of the farmers. Whether it is farmers or youth – it is an expressway of infinite possibilities for all. Friends, The construction of modern infrastructure in UP demonstrates how the resources are being used properly. You have seen very well how the public money was used earlier. Have you seen or not? Do you remember what used to happen? Do you remember or have you forgotten? But today the money of Uttar Pradesh is being invested in the development of Uttar Pradesh. Earlier many such big projects were launched on paper so that those people could fill their coffers. Today work is being done on such projects so that the money of the people of UP is saved. Your money should remain in your pocket. And brothers and sisters, When time is saved, convenience increases and resources are used properly, only then the potential increases. And when the potential increases, prosperity follows automatically. Today, we all are witness to the increasing potential of UP in the double engine government. Be it the Purvanchal Expressway or Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Kushinagar International Airport or important phases of the Dedicated Freight Corridor, many such projects have been dedicated to public service. Today work is going on in full swing on mega projects like Bundelkhand Expressway, Gorakhpur Link Expressway, Prayagraj Link Expressway, Delhi-Dehradun Expressway, Noida International Airport and Delhi-Meerut Rapid High Speed ​​Corridor. These are multi-purpose infrastructure projects with due consideration being taken for multimodal connectivity. Friends, In the 21st century, high-speed connectivity is the biggest need for the progress of any country and the state. When the goods reach their destination faster, then the cost will also come down. When costs come down, business will grow. When business grows, exports will increase and the economy of the country will grow. Therefore, the Ganga Expressway will give impetus as well as power to the development of UP. It will also benefit from the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan. Airports, metro, waterways and defence corridor will be connected with this expressway. Be it the installation of optical fiber networks for laying telephone wires, for laying electricity cables, for gas grids, for laying gas pipelines, for water grids, even looking at the possibilities for high-speed rail projects, it has been designed keeping all these requirements in mind under the GatiShakti master plan. The timely permission for new bridges and flyovers will speed up the work of this expressway. In future, cargo containers from Western Uttar Pradesh can be sent directly to Haldia Port through the dry port of Varanasi. In short, the Ganga Expressway will benefit farmers, enterprises, industries, and all those engaged in production and manufacturing, businessmen and hard working citizens. Brothers and sisters, When UP grows then the country progresses! Therefore, the focus of the double engine government is on the development of UP. With the mantra of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayas, we are making sincere efforts for the development of UP. You recall the old days, previous decisions and the old ways of doing things. You will see the difference clearly. Now there is no discrimination and everyone benefits in UP. You recall the condition five years ago. Except in some areas of the state, electricity was not available in other cities and villages. It used to be like this, wasn’t it? Only a few people benefited, right? The double engine government has not only given about 80 lakh free electricity connections in UP, but every district is being given many times more electricity than before. The earlier governments were never serious about the homes for the poor. Just now Yogi ji was describing that Modi ji worshiped Shiva ji in Kashi and immediately after that worshiped the workers, greeted them by showering them with flowers. Brothers and sisters, They used to pose for cameras, but our government works day and night only for the poor. Our government has provided pucca houses to more than 30 lakh poor people in UP. Brothers and sisters, When you build your own pucca house, do you feel like living with respect or not? The head is held high or not? Do you feel proud or not? Does the poor also have a desire to do something for the country or not? If Modi does this work, is it okay or not? Will we get their blessings or not if 30 lakh poor get their pucca houses? Will we get strength from their blessings or not? Will we be able to serve you more with that power or not? Will we work wholeheartedly for you or not? Brothers and sisters, Anyone here in Shahjahanpur has ever thought that here alone 50,000 people have got pucca houses and the biggest dream of their life has been fulfilled. Earlier, so much work never happened in the entire Uttar Pradesh. Modi and Yogi work day and night and will continue to do so for the people who have not yet got the houses under the PM Awas Yojana. Recently our government has sanctioned Rs 2 lakh crore for this. How much — two lakh crore rupees! And for what purpose – to build pucca houses for the poor! This treasure is yours; it is for the bright future of your children, friends. We cannot misuse your money for the betterment of 5 or 50 families. We work for you only, my brothers and sisters. Brothers and sisters, For the first time after independence, a government that feels the pain of the poor and works for the poor has been formed. For the first time, basic facilities like houses, electricity, water, roads, toilets, gas connection, are being given such priority. Such work of development changes the life of the poor, downtrodden, deprived and backwards. You recall the situation here. Earlier in the event of an emergency at night, people of Hardoi, Shahjahanpur and Farrukhabad had to run to Lucknow, Kanpur and Delhi for hospitalization. There were not many hospitals here, and there were no roads to go to other cities. Today, roads have also been built here, expressways are also being built, and medical colleges have also opened. One medical college each at both Hardoi and Shahjahanpur! Similarly, Yogi ji and his team have opened dozens of new medical colleges all over UP. That’s how potent and honest work happens. Brothers and sisters, The priority of our government is to empower and bring the benefits of development to all those who have been left behind in the society and are backwards. The same spirit is reflected in our agriculture policy and in the policy related to farmers. As far as making arrangements for providing seeds to marketing in the past few years, priority has been given to more than 80 percent small farmers of the country who have less than 2 hectares of land. Under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, thousands of crores of rupees have directly reached the bank account and the small farmers have benefited the most. Today we are connecting crores of small farmers also with the facility of Kisan Credit Cards, for whom banks never opened their doors. The record hike in MSP, record government purchases and money going directly into the farmers’ bank accounts has brought a lot of relief to the small farmers. Friends, We are focusing on expanding the area under irrigation in the country and introducing modern technology in the field of irrigation. Therefore, one lakh crore rupees is being spent on rural infrastructure, developing cold storages. Our effort is to create such an infrastructure near the villages itself, so that the farmers can cultivate perishable but high paying fruits and vegetables and can take them to markets quickly. This will also enable rapid expansion of food processing industries and new employment opportunities will be created near the villages itself. Brothers and sisters, Over the years, we have tried sincerely to find new options and solutions for the decades-old problems of sugarcane farmers. Today, UP is also one of the leading states in the country in terms of remunerative prices of sugarcane. Yogi ji’s government has set new paradigms even in the matter of payment. Today, blending of ethanol in petrol is also being given an unprecedented boost. As a result, the country is not only saving money on import of crude oil, but the country’s sugar sector is also getting stronger. Brothers and sisters, We have had some political parties who have problems with the heritage of the country and also with the development of the country. The problem with the country’s heritage is because they worry more about their vote bank. The problem with the development of the country is because the dependence of the poor and common human beings on them is on the wane. You see for yourself. These people have a problem with the construction of a grand corridor of Baba Vishwanath in Kashi. These people have a problem with the construction of a grand temple of Lord Shri Rama in Ayodhya. These people have a problem with the cleanliness campaign of Ganga ji. It is these people who question the army’s action against the kingpins of terror. It is these people who put the Made in India corona vaccines made by Indian scientists in the dock. Brothers and sisters, This state, this country is very huge and great. Governments have come and gone before. We all should celebrate the development and potential of the country with an open mind. But alas, these people do not think like this. In the last 4-5 years, people of UP have felt the changes when the government works with the right intention. You are well aware of the law and order situation in western UP before the government was formed under the leadership of Yogi ji. What was said here before? Here people used to say – Come back home at the fall of the dusk. Because those waving ‘katta’ (country-made revolvers) used to roam streets after the sun was set. Did the ‘katta’ vanish or not? Should the ‘katta’ culture be ended or not? There were questions regarding the safety of daughters. It was made difficult for daughters to go to schools and colleges. The family of the businessman used to worry about him once he left home in the morning. When poor families used to go to other states for work, there was concern about illegal occupation of house and land. No one could say when and where there would be riots and arson. Your love and blessings inspire us to work day and night, brothers and sisters. You know my dear brothers and sisters, earlier there were reports of migration from villages almost on a daily basis due to this situation. But in the last four-and-a-half years, Yogi ji’s government has worked very hard to improve the situation. Today, when the bulldozer runs on the mafia, on the illegal buildings, the pain is felt by those who have nurtured them. Therefore, today the people of the entire UP are saying – UP plus Yogi is very ‘Upyogi’ (useful). I will say it again – U.P.Y.O.G.I, UP plus Yogi, very useful! Friends, I will give you another example. A few days back, I watched a news report regarding Meerut, but the entire UP, Delhi NCR and other states of the country also need to know this. Brothers and sisters, There is a ‘mohalla’ (locality) in Meerut where there is a market – Sotiganj where all the stolen vehicles from across the country are brought in for dismantling and illegal use. It was going on like this for decades. The earlier governments did not have the courage to act against the kingpins of stolen vehicles. This work has also been done by the powerful Yogi ji’s government and the local administration. Now this notorious market of Sotiganj has been shut down. Brothers and sisters, Those who like the company of the mafia speak the language of the mafia. But we will glorify those who have made this country with their tenacity and sacrifice. The Amrit Mahotsav of Freedom is a symbol of this spirit. It is the duty of all of us to give dues to those who dedicated their lives for the freedom of the country. As part of this, Shaheed Museum is being built in Shahjahanpur. The memory of the martyrs has been preserved in the museum. The new generation visiting the museum will get the inspiration of dedication towards the nation. With your blessings, UP’s development will continue like this. Be it the East or West, Awadh or Bundelkhand, the campaign to develop every nook and corner of Uttar Pradesh will continue. Once again I congratulate and wish you all the best for the Ganga Expressway. Speak with me with full force Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Many thanks!