A railway overbridge near Aishbagh Stadium in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, has gone into controversy as it is near – not for the completion of delay or cost, but some critics say that there is a fundamental design defect that can make it unsafe for motor drivers.
Concerns have been raised around the bridges, around 90 degrees of the bridge, which the vehicles should interact immediately after the ascending. The Congress promised the state’s PWD minister Rakesh Singh to look into the issue on social media.
“Whenever a bridge is built, a lot of technical ideas are taken into consideration. So if there are such allegations, we will look into it,” he said, while the Congress party’s concerns were dismissed as baseless and politically motivated.
Built for Rs 18 crore, 648-meter-Lumb, 8.5-meter wide overbridge is aimed at connecting the crowded areas of Mahamai Ka Bagh, Pushpa Nagar and railway station zone with New Bhopal. Greetings as a relief project, promised to eliminate long waiting time on railway crossings and spare residents, circling many people for more than a decade. Government’s estimates suggested that the bridge would benefit three lakh passengers daily.
The bridge, whose construction started in March 2023, has also faced a delay. Initially, for completion of 18 months, it is now now reaching close to readiness after more than 36 months, which is delayed by factors such as power lines and shifting of coordination issues between the Public Works Department and the Railways.
Public Works Department (Bridge Department) Chief Engineer VD Verma told PTI, “Due to the metro station, there is a limited availability of land at the point. Due to land shortage, there was no other option. ROB aims to add two colonies.”
Only light vehicles will run on this overbridge, he said that heavy vehicles will not be allowed. , With PTI input
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