Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 16, 2021, inaugurated the 341-km Purvanchal Expressway at KarwalKheri in Sultanpur district of Uttar Pradesh after landing on the highway airstrip in an IAF C-130 Hercules plane. It will connect Lucknow with Ghazipur.
The 341-km long Purvanchal Express has been constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 22,500 crore. The Expressway starts from village Chaudsarai, located on Lucknow-Sultanpur road (NH-731), and ends at village Hydaria located on National Highway No. 31, 18 km east of UP-Bihar border. A 3.2-km long airstrip has also been constructed on the expressway to enable landing and take-off of Indian Air Force fighter planes in case of emergency.