Work to bring down Majerhat bridge begins

Kolkata: The work to bring down the remaining portion of the caved-in Majerhat bridge begun on Wednesday with the state Public Works Department (PWD) taking all necessary steps to reduce pollution during the work.

Initially, the portion of the bridge that is not within the ambit of the Railways will be brought down. The reason being as the required permission from the Railway authorities in this connection is yet to be received.

It may be recalled that the middle portion of the 54-year-old bridge had caved-in on September 4. Subsequently, the state government had taken the decision to bring down the remaining structure of the bridge and to build a completely new one at the same place. The decision was taken after the preliminary report of the high-power committee was submitted to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The state government has set a target to complete construction of the bridge within a time period of a year to give respite to the people of Behala and a major portion of South 24-Parganas from the daily woes of severe traffic congestion. Sources said the PWD engineers made an elaborate plan to ensure that the work to demolish the remaining portion of the bridge can be carried out as early as possible. It is learnt that a jaw-crusher machine will be brought from Mumbai for the work and it will help in reducing the level of pollution in the area.

Senior PWD engineers went to the spot on Wednesday and supervised the work. The portion, where the demolition work started on Wednesday, has been fenced using tin sheets. "It has been done so that the debris remain inside the area that has been cordoned off," said a senior official of the PWD. At the same time, the PWD engineers have started working on the design based on which the new bridge will come up. The design and plan of the bridge will also be given to the Railway authorities. The engineers feel that it would take around one-and-a-half months to initiate the work of the new bridge.

On the other hand, at a meeting in Behala, state Transport minister Suvendu Adhikari said that connecting buses will operate in order to ease the traffic situation and help commuters reach their destinations smoothly.