KMDA to raze damaged parts of Vivekananda Road flyover

KOLKATA: The Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) has decided to pull down some of the damaged steel girders of Vivekananda Road flyover. They will engage a consulting agency to conduct a fresh structural assessment and health study of the damaged flyover to decide whether it could be restored and connected with the proposed Ultadanga-Girish Park flyover.
KMDA sources said they would soon start pulling down the damaged steel girders and other damaged parts of the flyover. “Agencies will be engaged for the job. The plan is to remove all the damaged portions of the flyover to restore it to such a condition that it could be connected with the proposed Ultadanga-Girish Park flyover near Central Avenue in future,” said a KMDA official.
Police said the work to demolish the damaged parts of the flyover had been postponed for three weeks. KMDA engineers, along with officers of Posta police station, senior officers of Lalbazar and officials of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, will make a joint inspection on the exact condition of the flyover on Wednesday, following which the police will chalk out a route map about traffic diversion for the work.
After the collapse of the flyover on March 31, 2016, the PWD was given the custody of the flyover and a high level committee under the chief secretary was formed to decide whether it would be fully dismantled or not. The experts examined the design of the elevated structure. However, after three years, the custody of the flyover was handed back to KMDA earlier in 2019.
The plan is to connect Vivekananda Road flyover with the proposed Ultadanga-Girish Park flyover, which has been found to be viable. A detailed project report for the new flyover is already under way and nearing completion.
“It needs to be seen as to how the flyover could be restored and connected with the proposed Ultadanga-Girish Park flyover,” said a KMDA official.