UP to have 'State Capital Region' along lines of Delhi-NCR; CM Yogi directs officials

In a significant development, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has called for the formation of the 'Uttar Pradesh State Capital Region.' Yogi Adityanath has said that the Uttar Pradesh State Capital Region will be carved out along the lines of the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR). The Chief Minister has directed the authorities to prepare a proposal. The list of prominent cities, as per the directions, is to include the state capital, Lucknow and surrounding areas such as Unnao, Barabanki and Kanpur. 

Spread over an area of 243,286 sq. km, UP is divided into 18 divisions and 75 districts in total. The North Indian state, sharing its border with Nepal and Uttarakhand in the north, Delhi and Haryana in the northwest, Rajasthan in the west, Madhya Pradesh in the southwest, Bihar in the east and Jharkhand in the southeast. One of the most populous in India, it boasts of a population of 19.98 crores, according to the 2011 census. 

The step of formation of the Uttar Pradesh State Capital Region, like in the case of Delhi NCR in 1985, is most likely being taken to evolve harmonized policies for the control of land-uses and development of infrastructure in the region.