Indian Army to build temporary bridge at Enathu

KOLLAM: The Indian Army will construct a temporary bridge parallel to the Enath bridge in Adoor that was closed for repair works a month ago. The Union government has entrusted the Army with the job based on a request from minister for public works G. Sudhakaran. The ministry of defence has asked Vice-Chief of Army, Lt. General Sarath Chand,  who hails from Kottarakkara in Kollam, to supervise the construction of the ‘Bailey bridge.’ A team from the Army is likely to visit the bridge on Friday.

Meanwhile, the repair work,  including strengthening of a failed pillar of the old bridge undertaken by the PWD, is in progress. The vehicular traffic through the Enath bridge along MC Road near Adoor has been banned for an indefinite period after an expert team found serious damage on one of the pillars supporting the bridge on January 10. The bridge connects the districts of Kollam and Pathanamthitta  along MC Road.

An expert team led by  retired IIT professor Dr Aravind had earlier found that the  pillar was  weakened due to abrasion in the concrete underwater. The iron rods in the pillar are also visible outside under the water, apparently due to lack of proper maintenance. A diving team from Kochi had conducted inspections underwater and filmed the damage on the pillar. The PWD engineers had found that the cracks occurred due to the sinking of the pier supporting  the concrete. It was caused by damage of the elastomeric bearing under the pier.