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Bondel Road bridge to be ready by May 2005
PM News Bureau
Come May 2005 and the Bondel Road bridge in Kolkata will be completed - 16 years after the project was first conceived. The Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority and the state PWD are jointly implementing the project. According to officials, 60 per cent of the work has been completed and the balance work is expected to be completed in next eight months.
Although the project was conceived in 1988, the foundation stone of the project was laid in 1995 by then Chief Minister Jyoti Basu. As per the original plan, the project was to be completed by 1998 but it faced various hurdles, in the main land acquisition and rehabilitation, political protests and paucity of funds. Around 35 families in Ballygunge are yet to be rehabilitated and unless this issue is resolved, the project may overshoot even the new deadline.
In the meantime, the cost of the project has escalated from Rs 21 crore to Rs 36 crore. Most of the project cost is being met by KDMA.
(Sept 16-30, 2004)
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