Land transfer issues delay Junction bridge work

Construction of the new multi-level bridge at Viralimalai Road intersection near the Railway Junction in Tiruchi has slowed down due to the delay in transfer of land from Central and State agencies.

Although the Highways Department and the railways have commenced the project work simultaneously at the site, the works are currently under progress only on the Aristo Hotel and Dindigul Highway sides.

Construction on the Madurai Road and along the Mannarpuram Road are yet to begin as the land from the Tamil Nadu Special Police Battalion campus and the Defence Department have not yet been transferred to the Highways Department, according to reliable sources.

The alienation of about 18,500 square metres (4.6 acres) of land held by the Tamil Nadu Special Police Battalion is crucial for executing the project right from the beginning stage. A new road formation is to be created only after the alienation of this land. Similarly, about 0.6 acres of Defence lands needs to be transferred to the Highways. This apart, a small extent of private land near the Aristo Hotel side and a portion of Railway lands towards the Dindigul Highway are to be acquired.

The delay in transfer or acquisition of lands could have a domino effect. Currently, works taken up by the Railways and the Highways Department are under way on the full swing towards the Aristo Hotel side and the Dindigul Highway.

If the land was available, the work could progress simultaneously on the other side too, the sources said. The first of the two stage project is expected to be completed in three years. In the first stage, a new three-lane road-over-bridge with five arms will be built at a cost of Rs. 44.28 crore adjacent to the existing bridge.

In the next stage, the old bridge would be dismantled and a new bridge with two arms built in its place. That will take another two years to complete.

Sources in the department said piers for the bridge towards the Dindigul Highway had been erected.

Three of the six piers for the high level rotary at Aristo Hotel Junction have been raised.

However, shifting of utility lines such as underground drinking water and sewage lines and overhead power lines are to be taken up at the project site.

Source