Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the first phase of the Nagpur-Mumbai 'Samruddhi Expressway' here. The first phase connects Nagpur to the temple town of Shirdi in Ahmednagar district covering a distance of 520 km. The length of the total project, officially named as 'Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg', will be 701 km. The project is a brainchild of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and was conceptualised when he was the chief minister in 2015.
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Once completed, the expressway will reduce the travel time from Nagpur to Mumbai to seven hours. The project is being built at a cost of about Rs 55,000 crore and passes through 10 districts in the state. It will improve the connectivity of adjoining 14 other districts, and play a key role in the development of about 24 districts, including the regions of Vidarbha, Marathwada and North Maharashtra, officials said. It will connect to the Delhi Mumbai Expressway, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and tourist attractions like Ajanta-Ellora Caves, Shirdi, Lonar, among others, they said.