Atiq Khan Govt. disapproves course of alignment of highway in Farrukhabad, Unnao and Ballia districts Next move depends on the suggestions of District Magistrates and other officials LUCKNOW: The Greater Noida-Ballia Ganga Expressway project in Uttar Pradesh has hit a roadblock on the proposed course of alignment of the eight-lane access-controlled highway in three districts of the State. The Mayawati Government, however, is determined to remove the roadblocks to smoothen the process of completion of the Rs.30,000-crore project. To be constructed on an embankment on the left side of the Ganga, the 1047-km-long expressway will traverse through 16 districts. With the course of alignment in Farrukhabad, Unnao and Ballia districts proposed by the developer (JP Group) disapproved by the Government, the promoter is likely to be asked to reconsider the alignment proposal. The possibility of acquiring fertile agricultural land has led the Government to suggest a revision of the alignment proposed. At an official presentation on the Ganga Expressway project in the presence of State Chief Secretary Atul Kumar Gupta on July 17, the exact alignment of the road in the light of the proposed alignment was discussed threadbare. According to official sources, the views of the concerned district magistrates and the officials of Irrigation, PWD, Forest and Environment departments have been sought by the Government. "The Government will rely on the suggestions of the DMs and other officials before deciding on its next move,' said a senior official on condition of anonymity. In Farrukhabad district, a 55-km stretch of the expressway was proposed to be built midway between the Ganga and its tributary, the Ramganga, but in the alignment proposal the road was shown on the banks of the Ganga, official sources said. An official said the opinion of the Farrukhabad District Magistrate and the Irrigation Department (Flood Control wing) has been sought by the Government. In Shuklaganj town in Unnao district, the course of the highway needed to be shifted away from the course of the river on account of the settlements along its bank. The Unnao DM has been directed to submit his report on the proposal. At the end point of the expressway in Ballia district, which is 10 km before Manjhi Ghat, the road will merge with National Highway No.19. According to official sources, in the alignment proposal, the expressway was shifted away from NH-19 into the fertile agricultural land. "Since land has to be acquired by the State Government in its role as a facilitator, acquisition of land in that particular stretch in Ballia would have been practically impossible,' added the official. He said the proposal has been shot down by the Government. The Ganga Expressway project has been divided into four individual packages of road sections