Thiruvananthapuram: Public works department is struggling to complete approach roads to a few bridges built long back thanks to the delay in land acquisition. When DC spoke to the concerned executive engineers at its 16 regional offices across the state, they revealed that seven bridges were lying underutilised without a road to connect. During January 2016, the then works minister V. K. Ebrahim Kunju achieved an ambitious target of ‘100 bridges in 400 days’. It was not easy to complete the task as technical deadlocks in the form of having no approach roads or land acquisition issues took a heavy toll. But he was in no mood to back out from the project where he appointed a technical committee under the aegis of the then PWD secretary A. P. M. Mohammed Hanish.
“There were endless follow-up meetings on a weekly basis to evaluate the status,” said Mr Hanish. “Whenever technical snags developed, the issues were dealt with at the local level at the first instance. Or else, it was settled at the State level next day itself. Administrative sanction was provided in a time-bound manner where we came out with 104 and not 100 bridges before the deadline of 400 days.” The highlight of this challenging project was that not a single bridge is lying dormant. A top PWD official on condition of anonymity told DC that the then Chief Minister Oommen Chandy used to highlight the ‘100 bridges in 400 days’ project in whichever appropriate venue he could.
“Unfortunately the mega project has not been adequately documented and never got its due. No other Government in the past had done it. But sadly now there are quite many bridges in the State which are lying unutilized which has caused massive losses to the exchequer,” said a top PWD official. Melurkadavu Bridge at Dharmadom in Kannur, Panachamoottilkadavu Bridge in Pathanamthitta, Mariyil Kalungu Bridge in Thodupuzha in Idukki, Murikkallu Bridge in Muvattupuzha, Kovilakamthazham Bridge in Kozhikode, Cheekkalloor Bridge in Wayanad have been waiting for years to be opened for travelling. The seventh one is Mattathankadavu Bridge connecting Poothotta and Mulanthuruthy in Ernakulam district which was completed during the fag end of the previous UDF ministry’s rule.
Fortunately, Melurkadavu Bridge which is in Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's constituency in Kannur district is getting high priority by the roads' officials. The construction of a bridge on the Melukadavu-Melur Road and Parapuram-Pinarayi Road in Kannur got sanction during the previous LDF Government (V. S. Achuthanandan) in July 2009. It got administrative sanction and a special allocation of close to Rs 6 crore for the bridge work then. But PWD officials told DC that the 66.96-metre long bridge was completed in 2013.
“Unfortunately the approach roads were not ready due to land acquisition issues by the time the construction of Melurkadavu Bridge was over. Since the bridge is in a VVIP constituency, land acquisition is currently happening on a war footing. The current LDF Government had given an administrative sanction on 22 March this year to acquire 185.91 are of land where compensation worth Rs 1.13 crore is being awarded to property owners”, said a PWD official. Currently, the ball is in the court of revenue department to complete the land acquisition process after sketching finalised. The second bridge which is yet to be opened is Panachamoottikadavu Bridge in Pathanamthitta district which is also facing land acquisition issues.
There, more than a dozen residents had provided land free of cost as early as in 2007. PWD officials told DC that they are expecting to complete the land acquisition process in six months where hopefully in another two more months the approach road across the Manimala River will be ready. The 90-metre long Panachamoottil Kadavu Bridge was provided administrative sanction during July 2009 at the cost of Rs 5.2 crore. A top PWD official told DC that contrary to earlier times now the department is taking up bridge works only after the approach roads are ready.
“Earlier, roads and bridges department used to start the bridge works under the hope that land acquisition would be completed on a parallel basis. Unfortunately, there is an inordinate delay in land acquisition forcing us to initiate bridge works only after completing the procurement process,” said a top PWD official. Erayilkadavu Bridge in Kottayam has been opened to the public though the approach road is yet to be tarred. PWD officials in Idukki are having a hard time as Mariyil Kalungu Bridge across Thodupuzha river has long been completed. Unfortunately, the revenue department is yet to complete the land acquisition. Work towards Murikkallu Bridge in Muvattupuzha started during 2014, but land acquisition played spoilsport where 1.2 km road has to be acquired.
“Rs 35 crore is required towards compensation for land and another Rs 15 crore towards approach road construction at Murikkallu Bridge. The work has since been extended up to May 30,” said a PWD official in Muvattupuzha. The Kovilakamthazham Bridge across Ramapuzha in Kozhikode was started with much fanfare. Though landowners offered free surrender of their land, one of the landowners approached the court seeking compensation. The result is that the bridge constructed at the cost of '1.8 crore is lying like a scarecrow. The contractor had since closed the work last year. Cheekkalloor Bridge in Wayanad which is having a major and a minor bridge with a total four spans of 37.32 metres is also facing legal dispute due to land acquisition issues since 2011. PWD officials are hoping to end the stalemate on land acquisition in Manjeri where the local MLA is trying to solve the dispute by one man over the free surrender of property.
Mattathankadavu bridge still useless
The Mattathankadavu Bridge connecting Mulanthuruthy, Amballoor and Udayamperoor panchayats in Ernakulam district was inaugurated during the last leg of the previous UDF government. Though the bridge was inaugurated by the then chief minister Oomen Chandy, the approach road is still not ready and the structure remains unusable. Though the 50.64 metre long bridge was completed in haste by including it in the ‘100 bridges in 400 days’ project announced by the previous government in 2015, the villagers are yet to get its benefit. The Kerala State Construction Corporation built the bridge with two spans of 25.32 metre each.
“The bridge is helpful for the residents of Amballur and Mulanthuruthy to access Vaikkom – Tripunithura Road. But, the delay in land acquisition has slowed down the construction of the approach road. The issue has been recently taken up with the MLA,” said George Mani, member of Mulanthuruthy panchayat. However, commuters, especially two-wheeler riders, rarely access the bridge through the unmotorable mud stretch on both sides, though it’s a risky ride. The bridge topped the list of Anoop Jacob MLA’s achievements during the election campaign.
