The Uttar Pradesh government will construct a six-lane expressway connecting Prayagraj (formerly known as Allahabad) to western Uttar Pradesh. The decision was taken in a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Prayagraj on Tuesday.

“The Cabinet has decided to make Ganga Expressway to connect Prayagraj with Western Uttar Pradesh,” the CM told reporters after the meeting, the first ever to be held at Prayagraj.

“This will be world’s longest expressway, approximately 600 km. It will take 6,556 hectares of land and will cost approximately Rs 36,000 crore,” the CM revealed.

The Ganga Expressway will begin from Meerut in western UP and pass through Amroha, Bulandshahr, Budaun, Shahjahanpur, Kannauj, Unnao, Raebareli and Pratapgarh before culminating at Prayagraj in eastern UP.

The CM also said that his government has decided to exempt the movie Uri: The Surgical Strikes from state GST. He said that the decision was taken to encourage youth to watch the movie and draw inspiration from it.

“This film will instil a feeling of nationalism in the youth and the citizens of the country,” the CM remarked.

At the press conference, the CM reiterated his view on the Centre’s appeal to the Supreme Court seeking permission for release of excess vacant land around Ayodhya disputed site to Ram temple trust.

“I welcome the government’s appeal in SC. This was necessary,” he said.

Before the cabinet meeting earlier today, the CM had told reporters that the permission for use of the undisputed land is being sought for some time.

“We welcome the move by the Centre. We have been saying that we should get permission to use the undisputed land,” he said.

The Centre on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court to allow it to hand over part of the land that is not under dispute to Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas, the trust overseeing the Ram temple plan.

The top court had ordered status quo at the site in Ayodhya in a 2011 order.

While directing that there shall be no religious activity on the 67-acre land, acquired by the central government adjacent to the disputed structure, the apex court said that the status quo shall be maintained with regard to the rest of the land. Only 0.313 acres is the disputed land.

The government now wants the status quo removed on the excess vacant land acquired around Ayodhya’s disputed site, a move that has significant importance ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Read More: In big move, Centre seeks SC nod to transfer undisputed Ayodhya land to Ram temple trust

The government’s move comes on a day when the Supreme Court was to hear the Ayodhya title suit but was cancelled as Justice SA Bobde – who was among the five-judge constitution bench of the top court – was not available due to medical reasons.