The Baina bridge and its multiple loops is one confusing maze. Gammon India is currently working on the bridge with three exits estimated to cost Rs 548.27 crore. It is a specialized corridor connecting gate number nine and one of the MPT. This project is a joint venture between NHAI and MPT

The construction work of two major projects including the remaining portion of the four-lane highway NH17B from Varunapuri Mangor-Hill to berth no-9 of Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) is  going on in full swing but these works have failed to meet their deadline of 2018.

“After the airport road completion, the Varunapuri stretch of the highway and the Baina flyover also known as the MPT corridor faced delays of land acquisition, evicting encroachers and CRZ clearances but all those delays found assistance from bad governance during the UPA regime. It’s only now since 2014 that work commenced and the Baina bridge works are in full swing,” said  Vasco resident Jayant Jadhav.

While Kirish Siram, a supervisor on the bridge explained that this is one of Goa’s unique bridge and involves multiple agencies besides coordination with the Mormugao Municipality,  South Western railways and the naval residences which led to considerable delays in commencing the work and executing it. Sriram blamed the Goa PWD for delays in land acquisition.

The construction of the remaining portion of the four-lane highway will include an elevated road-cum-flyover-cum-road over bridge (ROB) from Joshi Bhat to berth no- 9 of MPT via Ravindra Bhavan besides loop connectivity ramps. The total cost of the balance portion of the four-lane highway is around Rs 546 crore. The constriction work has been awarded to Gammon India Pvt Ltd.

The excavation work of the four-lane highway from Varunapuri Mangor-Hill junction to Gandhinagar is also going on while the last four to five years, the incomplete stretch of the four-lane highway near Varunapuri Mangor-Hill junction had become a parking space for truckers.

The contractors involved in the construction work had to take special care of the underground multipurpose petroleum pipeline of Zuari Indian Oil Tanking Ltd (ZIOTL) which had once suffered a rupture while carrying out an excavation work, resulting in a major fire due to leakage of naphtha. Also the CRZ area of Baina beach, a major Baina nullah and a nearby solar park are some of the few constraints that this bridge is undergoing though locals are unhappy of the proximity of the construction from the high tide line.