GUWAHATI, March 1 - Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today performed the bhumi pujan to mark the inauguration of the construction of the six-lane bridge over the Brahmaputra river connecting Guwahati and North Guwahati at Bharalumukh.
With a project cost of Rs 2,608 crore, the extra-dosed PSC (pre-stressed concrete) bridge will be the first-of-its-kind in the Northeast and will be implemented by Assam PWD with consultancy services from Systra Engenharia Consultoria Ltd, Brazil, contractor services from M/s SP Singla Construction Pvt Ltd and funding agency New Development Bank. The Assam government will bear 20 per cent of the total project cost.
The foundation stone of the bridge was earlier laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 9, 2019.
While the length of the six-lane project will be 8.4 km with approach roads on both sides of the Brahmaputra, the length of the actual bridge over the river will be 1.24 km. The bridge corridor will start from Bharalumukh on the south bank to the NH-31 near Gauripur on the north bank. The project includes a three-lane elevated road running along the south bank (1,450 m) and a six-lane road and via-duct on the north bank (5,230 m).
The project is estimated to be completed within four years.
The bridge will facilitate the growth of the 6,000-sq km Assam State Capital Region by expanding the Guwahati metropolitan area to the north bank. It will also reduce travel time between north and south banks to 15 minutes.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said the bridge would revolutionise connectivity across the Brahmaputra and that the bridge � unique in every aspect � would take a giant step towards making Assam one of the top performing states in the country.
Referring to the Smart City project, Sonowal said the bridge would facilitate an integrated ICT application for an intelligent traffic system leading to decongestion of city traffic.
�Guwahati is no longer a gateway to Northeast India but is also tipped to be the gateway to Southeast Asian countries. It will also throw open new opportunities to the youths of the State and they need to empower themselves and reap dividends from these transformations,� he said.
He also urged the youths not to become victims of the menace of drugs and abuse of the internet, especially social media. He asked them to work hard and increase their resilience and become ambassadors of peace and development.
PWD Minister Himanta Biswa Sharma, giving an account of the different development initiatives, said the State government was all set to establish new medical and engineering colleges at Biswanath, Goalpara, Karimganj, Dhemaji, Behali, Bongaigaon, Sualkuchi, etc. He added that an iconic building at the birthplace of Srimanta Sankaradeva at Batadrava would be set up.
Guwahati Development Minister Siddhartha Bhattacharya and Guwahati MP Queen Oja also spoke on the occasion.
