TEAM HERALD
PANJIM/ponda: The Central Government has sanctioned Rs 1,100 crore for the proposed six-lane Zuari bridge, the foundation stone for which will be laid on August 15 this year, Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Ramakrishna (Sudin) Dhavalikar said on Monday.
“Union Ministry has sanctioned Rs 1100 crore for the project, the estimated cost of which comes to around Rs 1500 crore,” Dhavalikar said.
The minister said that the State has finalized a one-km-long alignment for the bridge that will have a five-km-long flyover. “The proposed bridge would be constructed over the existing Railway Bridge,” he said.
The State government has also constituted a five-member expert panel comprising engineering agencies empanelled with the Central and State governments, to study the new Zuari Bridge design, prepared by project consultant S N Bhobe, after the bridge designed by the consultancy firm collapsed in Surat, Gujarat in June, 2014.
When asked why the government is staying with S N Bhobe consultancy, the minister said, “We have signed an agreement with the firm and if we withdraw it we will have to pay them huge compensation.”
The consultancy firm has been booked by Surat police under culpable homicide not amounting to murder (section 304 IPC), besides other sections of the IPC blaming them for the collapse of the flyover under construction, at Athwalines that killed ten labourers.
Government last week submitted the detailed project report (DPR) and alignment for the new Zuari bridge to the office of Union Minister for Road, Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari. Government is planning to make the new Zuari bridge, a signature bridge, with unique design features that would attract tourists.
Speaking at Republic Day function at Ponda, PWD Minister Sudin Dhavalikar assured to complete various ongoing development projects and take up new projects including foundation stone for four-lane Khandepar Bridge project within two months.
Dhavalikar said the construction work of 25 MLD treatment plant at Opa project site and 27 MLD water treatment plant at Ganje-Usgao will be completed soon.
“The Ribandar-Old Goa-Panjim four lane pilot project work is likely to be completed in December 2015.”
However, due to shortage of funds in the government coffers, many development works are delayed,” stated Dhavalikar.
“The Education Department has acquired about 1.5 lakh square metres of land for educational purpose and about 10,000 square metres of land will be awarded to educational institutions in Ponda to set up their educational projects,” he said and added that Ponda traffic management tender will be issued in May.
Earlier, Dhavalikar offered floral tributes at the Martyrs Memorial at Kranti Maidan and unfurled the tricolour. Ponda MLA Lavoo Mamledar, Deputy Collector Johnson Fernandes, Ponda Municipal Council (PMC) Vice President Shantaram Colvekar, Councillors Vishwanath Dalvi, Sitaram Dangi, Vidya Punalekar, Nidhi Mamlekar, DySP Dinraj Govekar, PI C L Patil, Lieutenant Karnal of 6 TTR at Ponda R K Chakravarthi and Ponda BDO Premanda Naik were present on the occasion.
