Finance dept's nod to dismantle & reconstruct Kalighat Bridge sought

Kolkata: Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) will take up dismantling and reconstruction of Kalighat Bridge in South Kolkata.

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) in this regard has been submitted to the state Finance department for necessary financial sanction.

"The entire work for dismantling and constructing a new bridge will take at least 18 months as it will involve a lot of expertise. Work will be taken up in two phases- half portion of the bridge will be dismantled first and constructed afresh. Then the remaining half will be pulled down and a new bridge will be set up," a senior official of KMDA said.

The move will ensure that traffic movement is not disrupted while the work will be undertaken. When half portion of the bridge will be pulled down and then constructed, vehicles will ply over the other half.

Accordingly, when the second portion will be pulled down and built, vehicles will run over the first portion which will be then already constructed afresh. According to the DPR, the entire work will involve Rs 18 crore.

According to KMDA sources, when the bridge was constructed six decades back, it was also done in two phases.

Some months back, KMDA had taken up repair and retrofitting of the bridge but vehicular movement was not suspended during the work. Portions of concrete had worn out and several cracks had developed weakening its structure. The corroded portion was properly treated and reinforcement was done in a thorough manner to strengthen the bridge. Grouting was done for repair of the cracks.

"However, the work was temporary and as per recommendation of the expert committee on bridges, we will now dismantle the bridge and a new bridge will be constructed," the official added.

The 60-year-old bridge over Tolly Nullah was found to suffer reasonable damage in the health audit report of eight bridges that was submitted to KMDA in June 2020.

The bridge's weight bearing capacity was found highly compromised and the acidic vapour from the waters of Tolly Nullah corroded parts underneath the bridge making it vulnerable.

The bridge is located close to the residence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at Harish Chatterjee street and so there is always a security factor involved.