New bridge proposed over Bengal’s Hooghly river at Bagnan, as part of Varanasi-Kolkata Expressway

A senior PWD official said, “Earlier, it was planned that the Varanasi-Kolkata expressway would enter West Bengal through Purulia and merge with Bombay Road at Bagnan. However, the state government proposed a revised plan to build a new bridge over the Hooghly connecting Bagnan to Kolkata at Pujali. The Centre has accepted this proposal, but the final alignment is yet to be decided.”

Responding recently to a question from BJP MP Samik Bhattacharya, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari told Parliament that land acquisition notifications had been completed in Purulia, Bankura, and Hooghly districts. However, progress was stalled as the state government revised the alignment of the expressway.

“The work of construction of the Varanasi-Kolkata Expressway has been awarded in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Jharkhand, except at certain locations. The preparation of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the stretch in West Bengal has also been awarded,” Gadkari said in the Rajya Sabha.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is executing the project, while the West Bengal government is responsible for land acquisition. The 620-km expressway, with an estimated cost of around Rs 35,000 crore, aims to cut travel time between Varanasi and Kolkata from 12–14 hours to around six hours. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone for the project in February 2024, with completion initially targeted for March 2028. However, officials said the change in alignment could extend the timeline by a year or more.

According to the state administration, the new expressway — along with the proposed bridge — will not only reduce travel time between Varanasi and Kolkata but also ease traffic congestion on the existing Grand Trunk Road, a key corridor connecting Kolkata with Delhi.

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