Work on Manair River Front picks up pace

KARIMNAGAR: Work on the Manair River Front (MRF), a dream project of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, is underway at Karimnagar. Administrative sanction has been accorded for an amount of Rs 310 crore for the construction of a 3.7 km retaining wall from the crest gates to the cable stayed bridge. The construction of five check dams covering a length of 10 km are also underway on a war footing so that the river front is filled with water 365 days in a year.

It has been the Chief Minister’s dream to construct the MRF on the line of the Sabarmati River Front in Gujarat. `100 crore was allocated in the State Budget recently for the project, apart from funds for tourism development. A part of the river front project — the cable stayed bridge — has already been completed. It is located 3 km away from the dam crest gates.

Irrigation and other concerned departments have been preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) by taking suggestion of the consultation agency. Gangula Kamalakar, Minister for Civil Supplies and BC Welfare, said that Karimnagar was heading towards development in all sectors and that the city would turn into a tourism hub once the MRF project is completed.

He also said that the Lower Manair Dam, an IT tower, the proposed KCR Island, cable stayed bridge, Manair River Front, Ujwala Park and Deer Park would all exist within a 10 km stretch, thereby boosting tourism. According to Irrigation authorities, retaining walls will be constructed to store water throughout the year, and it will be a rare sight to have such a large water body near a city in the State. Private lands on both sides of the river still have to be acquired, however authorities are yet to finalized whether the area of development will be 100 meters or 200 meters.