Govt refuses to table Ganga Expressway papers in Assembly

Lucknow, Feb 19 (UNI) The Uttar Pradesh government today refused to table documents and other details of the proposed 1047 km eight lane Ganga Expressway in the state Legislative Assembly claiming that the award of the contact was given in a very transparent manner.

Dissatisfied with the government's reply, agitated BJP members staged a noisy walkout of the house proceedings.

Raising the issue through an adjournment motion during zero hour, BJP legislature party leader Om Prakash Singh demanded tabling of all the documents of the proposed Ganga Expressway project alleging that huge ''kickbacks'' were accepted by the government in awarding the contact to a private company.

Mr Singh also alleged that the government had not taken any clearance from the environment, pollution and archeology departments before clearing the project.

''People's faith in holy Ganga river would be at stake due to the emerging pollution after the start of the expressway, while the flood situation would be critical in the cities situated on the bank of the river,'' he added.

BJP's Radha Mohan Das Agarwal demanded that the construction of the expressway be launched from Ballia, not Noida.

SP chief whip Ambika Choudhury raised the issue of acquisition of the fertile land of the farmers.

When JP Industries, who had been awarded Taj Expressway, could not even built one kilometer of road in the past five years then how could it construct one kilometer per day to complete the Ganga Expressway, he questioned.

Meanwhile, contradicting the allegations of the opposition, state Parliamentary Affairs minister Lalji Verma said the awarded company would seek all clearance before the start of the project.

''The project is a milestone for the state and it will certainly boost job opportunities, while traders and farmers would be benefitted,'' he added.

Only 28,000 hectares of land had been given to the promoter and all precaution had been taken to make the project transparent, the minister added.

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