Introduction
The Grand Trunk Road, a 2,500‑kilometre artery that once linked the heart of the Mughal empire to the far‑flung frontiers of Bengal, has long been celebrated as a living museum of South Asian history. From ancient caravanserais to colonial railway bridges, each mile tells a story of conquest, trade, and cultural exchange. Yet, a bureaucratic overhaul of highway numbers in the early 2010s quietly stripped the road of its historic markers, replacing centuries‑old names with a string of alphanumeric codes. This article explores how the renumbering project unfolded, why it mattered to heritage, and what the future holds for India’s most iconic thoroughfare. (source)
The legacy of the Grand Trunk Road
The Grand Trunk Road (GT Road) began as the Uttarapatha in ancient times, later expanded by Emperor Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century, and finally cemented under British rule as a strategic link between Calcutta and Peshawar. Along its route lie historic towns such as Murshidabad, Kanpur, and Lahore, each bearing monuments, inns, and markets that echo the road’s multi‑layered past. Scholars and travellers have long used the GT Road as a chronological spine to map South Asian civilization.
The 2010 renumbering drive
In 2010, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways launched a nationwide effort to rationalise highway numbering, aiming for a grid‑like system where east‑west routes receive even numbers and north‑south routes odd numbers. The GT Road, which snakes across multiple states, was dissected into several National Highways (NH) – NH 19, NH 44, NH 2, among others. Official memoranda promised “greater clarity for logistics and navigation”, but the implementation ignored the cultural resonance embedded in the original name.
How the new numbers erased history
By replacing the moniker “Grand Trunk Road” with a series of NH designations, the government unintentionally erased a unifying narrative. Signboards, maps, and GPS databases now refer to isolated segments rather than a continuous historic corridor. This fragmentation has led to:
- Loss of heritage tourism branding; travellers no longer recognise the route as a single historic journey.
- Reduced funding for conservation of age‑old structures that were once highlighted under the GT Road umbrella.
- Confusion among local communities who continue to call the road by its traditional name.
Below is a snapshot of the most significant re‑assignments as of January 2026:
| Original stretch (km) | Historical landmarks | New NH designation |
|---|---|---|
| Delhi – Agra (233 km) | Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri | NH 19 |
| Kanpur – Varanasi (345 km) | Kanpur Memorial, Ganga ghats | NH 19 |
| Patna – Kolkata (560 km) | Mahavir Mandir, Howrah Bridge | NH 2 |
| Ludhiana – Amritsar (80 km) | Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh | NH 44 |
Public response and preservation efforts
Heritage activists, historians, and even commercial tour operators rallied against the renumbering. Petitions to the Ministry urged the retention of the GT Road label alongside the new NH numbers. Some state governments responded by installing dual‑language signage – the official NH code paired with “Grand Trunk Road”. NGOs have also launched digital archives that map historic sites using the original route, ensuring that the narrative survives in the age of data‑driven travel.
Looking ahead: balancing modernity with memory
India’s infrastructure agenda continues to prioritise speed, safety, and economic efficiency. Yet, the GT Road episode illustrates the cost of overlooking cultural continuity. Future policy could adopt a hybrid naming model: retain historic names for tourism and education while employing systematic codes for logistics. Integrating heritage markers into smart‑city platforms would allow travelers to experience the road’s story without compromising modern navigation.
Conclusion
The bureaucratic renumbering of the Grand Trunk Road serves as a cautionary tale about the unintended consequences of administrative efficiency on collective memory. While the new highway numbers have streamlined transport planning, they have also fragmented a historic corridor that once symbolised unity across the subcontinent. Ongoing advocacy and dual‑branding initiatives demonstrate that preserving the road’s legacy is possible, provided policymakers recognise the value of heritage alongside infrastructure development.
Image by: Tahir Osman
https://www.pexels.com/@tahir-osman-109306362
