India Opens First Part of Longest Expressway
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India has opened the first part of a 1,386-kilometer expressway that will connect its capital city, New Delhi, to Mumbai, the country’s financial hub. This is an important milestone for India as the country tries to improve its infrastructure and catch up to its neighbor, China.
When the expressway is complete, it will have eight lanes, four lanes in each direction. It will also be India’s longest expressway. People think it will reduce travel time between New Delhi and Mumbai from 24 hours to 12 hours.
On Sunday, the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, inaugurated the 246-kilometer part of the expressway that opened. This part of the expressway connects New Delhi to Lalsot, which is a popular tourist destination. People go to Lalsot to see palaces and mountains.
Modi said that the expressway is one of the most advanced in the world. He also thinks that the large road will help India’s economy.
The Indian government said that it invested about $13 billion into the expressway project. The first part that opened cost about $1.4 billion.
The first part of this expressway is a big step for India, even though India's infrastructure is still far behind China's. Recently, China has invested a lot in big infrastructure projects like the world's longest high-speed rail network and a very large expressway system.
On the other hand, India's trains are unreliable, and the roads are narrow and damaged, which slows down travel time.
Vocabulary24 words
- Part
- a piece of something; a section of a whole thing; not the whole thing
- Expressway
- a large road for fast travel over long distances; highway; motorway; freeway
- Capital
- the most important city or town of a country or region, usually the location of the government
- Financial hub
- a city or region where many banks, financial institutions/companies are located
- Milestone
- An important stage or event in the development of something or in someone’s life; an achievement that marks a significant progress
- Improve
- to make something better
- Infrastructure
- equipment and structures for a city or society (roads, railroads, bridges, power plants, etc.)
- Catch up
- to reach the same level or standard as someone or something else
- Neighbor
- a person or country living or located next to another
- Lane
- a part of a road marked for a single line of vehicles
- Direction
- the way that someone or something is moving or facing; north, east, south, west
- Reduce
- to make less; make smaller; decrease; bring down; shrink
- Prime minister
- the head or leader of an elected government of a country
- Inaugurate
- to put something into use or action; to make a formal beginning of something; initiate; to launch with a ceremony
- Tourist destination
- a place where many people go to visit for sightseeing or vacation
- Palace
- a large and impressive building that is or was for a king/queen, royal family member or important person
- Economy
- the system according to which the money, industry, and trade of a country or region are organized; the supply of money, production of goods and purchase of goods
- Invest
- put money into; spend money on a project or business
- Billion
- 1,000,000,000 = one-billion
- Step
- an action taken to achieve a goal; a small part of a large goal
- Behind
- not as good as another person/thing; at a lower or less advanced level than something or someone else
- High-speed rail
- a very fast train ?
- On the other hand
- a phrase to show contrast; to express an opposite idea or opinion
- Unreliable
- not to be trusted or depended on; can’t count on it; can’t rely on it; not safe or efficient
Discussion questions
- What do you think about the Indian government's decision to invest $13 billion in building the expressway? Do you think it was a wise investment, or should the money have been used for other things?
- Why do you think India's infrastructure is still far behind China's? What steps do you think India should take to catch up?
- Do you think the completion of the expressway will help boost India's economy? How and why? Are there any negative effects?
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