Jaypee deposits Rs 1,491 crore as bank guarantee

Expressway is expected to be completed in five years

Land acquisition to be completed in the next two years

Jaiprakash Associates on 24 March signed the concession agreement with UP authorities for the Rs 40,000-crore Ganga Expressway project and deposited Rs 1,491 crore as bank guarantee for this. Jaypee Ganga Infrastructure Corporation will implement the 1,047 km-long six lane access controlled Ganga Expressway, which will link Greater Noida with Ballia in eastern UP.

Jaiprakash Associates won the contract to build the Ganga expressway on the basis of its bid, which was the lowest at 14,000 hectares. The project, which was floated by UP chief minister Mayawati soon after returning to power last year, attracted bids from 19 bidders, including Reliance Energy, Unitech and Gammon. The winner is supposed to manage the construction cost through toll collection and the land given to it at a concessional rate by the government for private development.

Land acquisition for the project is likely to be completed in the next two years, following which the construction will start.

The expressway is expected to be completed in five years from now. Jaiprakash Associates will acquire land for development at six locations across the expressway: Secunderabad, Etah, Rae Bareilly, Pratapgarh, Mirzapur and Varanasi.