Uttar Pradesh charts ‘26 roadmap with mass recruitment, infra push and investment drive

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government has outlined an ambitious roadmap for 2026, focusing on large scale recruitment, big ticket infrastructure projects and measures to attract fresh investment. The initiatives are aimed at accelerating economic growth and improving public services across the state.

A major thrust will be on employment generation. Officials said around 1.5 lakh government jobs are expected to be filled during the year across departments. The police department alone is set to recruit about 35,000 personnel, including constables and sub inspectors. Significant recruitment is also planned in the education, revenue, health and social welfare departments.

Infrastructure development will remain a key priority. The Noida International Airport at Jewar is expected to begin operations in 2026. Built over 3,300 acres with an investment of nearly ₹7,000 crore, the airport will start with one runway and is designed to expand up to five runways in future. At full scale, it is expected to handle around one crore passengers annually.

The long awaited Ganga Expressway is also slated for inauguration this year. The 594 km corridor will connect Meerut with Prayagraj, passing through a dozen districts. Officials said the project, built at a cost of over ₹36,000 crore, will significantly cut travel time and provide a boost to logistics, trade and industrial activity in central and western Uttar Pradesh. On the investment front, the government is preparing for its fifth ground breaking ceremony early in the year. Projects worth more than ₹5 lakh crore are expected to be taken to the implementation stage. Since 2018, four such ceremonies have been held, with officials claiming that projects worth over ₹15 lakh crore have already moved on ground, creating large scale employment opportunities.

The state is also considering hosting another Global Investors Summit in 2026, three years after the last edition that attracted investment proposals exceeding ₹35 lakh crore. Invest UP and the industrial development department have begun internal consultations to draw up a roadmap for the proposed summit.

To further improve ease of doing business, the government plans to roll out Nivesh Mitra 3.0, an upgraded version of its online single window clearance system. The new platform is expected to offer faster approvals and more transparency to investors.

Ayush hospitals will offer surgeries, drug regulation and cybercrime response will be strengthened, and the Kanpur–Lucknow Expressway nears completion, as Uttar Pradesh pushes investment, jobs and better public infrastructure in 2026.