High-speed corridors to link UP with North East

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari​

NEW DELHI: A 630-km corridor connecting Siliguri in West Bengal with Guwahati (Assam) and Shillong (Meghalaya) will be built at a cost of Rs 61,500 crore, announced road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari Monday.The road transport ministry has also taken up an expressway connectivity project from Gorakhpur (UP) to Siliguri.Once completed, the two corridors will provide high-speed connectivity between Uttar Pradesh and North East.Speaking at an event, Gadkari added that the 630-km corridor, which will be the "lifeline" of North East, will have the mix of construction of greenfield (new) stretches and upgradation of existing highway connectivity to make the end-to-end travel seamless. He said the first leg of the corridor, Siliguri to Guwahati (400 km), will be built at an investment of Rs 30,000 crore and the project alignment is in approval stage.