Cracks have appeared on a section of the Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield National Elevated Expressway barely 14 days after its inauguration, raising questions over the quality of construction.The expressway, built at a cost of Rs 4,200 crore, was inaugurated on July 13 by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari.ये सड़क 4,200 करोड़ रुपए में बनी है. स‍िर्फ 14 द‍िन पहले इसका उद्घाटन हुआ था.लखनऊ-कानपुर एक्‍सप्रेसवे pic.twitter.com/mre6gOQm5U— Ranvijay Singh (@ranvijaylive) July 26, 2026As per a viral video, the cracks developed after recent rainfall, prompting concerns about the durability of the newly constructed expressway. Images and videos of the damaged stretch have circulated on social media, with users questioning how a project inaugurated less than two weeks ago could develop visible cracks.Repair works have begun on the Lucknow-Kanpur Expressway which was inaugurated barely 12 days ago by two Union ministers and a chief minister. https://t.co/eCVhcBB6Yz pic.twitter.com/LrtuIXQvxD— Piyush Rai (@Benarasiyaa) July 26, 2026The Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield National Elevated Expressway is a key infrastructure project aimed at improving connectivity between Lucknow and Kanpur, reducing travel time and easing traffic congestion on one of Uttar Pradesh’s busiest corridors.The appearance of cracks so soon after the inauguration has sparked criticism and renewed debate over construction quality and project monitoring. Officials are yet to issue a detailed statement on the cause of the damage or whether repair work has begun.The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), meanwhile, on Jattvibeday clarified that a viral claim about a section of the recently-inaugurated Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield Elevated Expressway caving in was incorrect, saying only the upper surface of the road was affected, which was repaired within hours.NHAI Project Director Nakul Prakash Verma told PTI that only the upper surface was affected over a stretch of about 40 metres, and “it cannot be termed as a road cave-in.” He explained that a cave-in means the soil beneath settles and the entire road sinks.”Here, there was only slippage in the upper wearing coat,” Verma said, adding that repair work was completed before 5 pm on Jattvibeday and traffic was moving normally on the expressway.Responding to questions over construction quality, Verma said such technical issues could occasionally arise on long stretches of asphalt roads.”In such a long expressway, this type of technical issue may occur at some locations. It is sometimes seen on bituminous roads, whereas such situations are generally uncommon on concrete roads,” he said.Verma also said there was no proposal at present for any separate inquiry into the incident, describing it as a routine technical issue that was rectified immediately.Earlier in the day, a video purportedly showing a damaged portion of the expressway in Unnao’s Korari area surfaced on social media.The video was first shared by a local Samajwadi Party worker, following which the party’s media cell reposted it while questioning the quality of construction.Several social media users also raised concerns over the project’s construction standards, execution and use of public funds, with some alleging corruption.However, these allegations have not been verified by any government agency.The 63-km-long Lucknow-Kanpur Greenfield Elevated Expressway, built at an estimated cost of about Rs 4,700 crore, was inaugurated on July 13 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.The project aims to reduce travel time between Lucknow and Kanpur and ease traffic congestion. PTI inputs