The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Sunday dismissed viral claims that a section of the newly inaugurated Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield Elevated Expressway had caved in, according to PTI.
NHAI clarified that only the upper surface of the carriageway was affected and the issue was repaired within a few hours.
The clarification came after a video showing a damaged stretch of the expressway in Unnao’s Korari area circulated widely on social media, triggering questions about the quality of construction on the recently opened highway.
NHAI says traffic restored after repairs
NHAI Project Director Nakul Prakash Verma said the affected portion was limited to the upper wearing coat over a stretch of around 40 metres and did not amount to a structural failure.
“Here, there was only slippage in the upper wearing coat,” Verma told PTI, adding that repair work was completed before 5 pm on Sunday and traffic resumed normal movement on the expressway.
He also rejected the description of the incident as a cave-in.
“It cannot be termed as a road cave-in.” he told PTI.
He explained that a cave-in refers to the settlement of the soil beneath a road, causing the entire structure to sink, which was not the case in this instance.
Responding to concerns over construction quality, Verma said such issues could occasionally occur on long stretches of bituminous roads.
“In such a long expressway, this type of technical issue may occur at some locations. It is sometimes seen on bituminous roads, whereas such situations are generally uncommon on concrete roads,” he told PTI.
He further said there was no proposal for a separate inquiry, describing the incident as a routine technical issue that had been rectified promptly.
Viral video sparked questions over construction quality
The video was first shared on social media by a local Samajwadi Party worker and was later reposted by the party’s media cell, which questioned the quality of construction.
Several users on social media also raised concerns over the execution of the project, construction standards and the use of public funds, with some alleging corruption. However, these allegations have not been verified by any government agency.
The 63-km Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield Elevated Expressway, built at an estimated cost of Rs 4,700 crore, was inaugurated on July 13 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The expressway has been developed to reduce travel time between Lucknow and Kanpur while easing congestion on the existing route.