Barely 10 months after Mahad collapse, new bridge on Mumbai-Goa highway inaugurated
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Surface Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari were present at the inauguration of the new bridge
A new bridge on Savitri river in Raigad district on the Mumbai-Goa highway opened for vehicular traffic on Monday, barely 10 months after the old British-era bridge collapsed.
26 people had died on August 2 last year after two State Transport buses and some other vehicles fell in the swollen river following the bridge collapse on Mumbai-Goa Highway near Mahad in Raigad district, about 170 kms from Mumbai.
The British-era bridge, part of the Panvel-Mahad-Panjim NH66, was to be dismantled in December 2016 as part of Mumbai-Goa Highway expansion project.
The Highways Ministry and the State Public Works Department (PWD) have now built a three-lane bridge in record 165 days by incurring a cost of Rs 35.55 crore.
The new 239 metre bridge, thrown open for public use from today, has been built alongside the British-era bridge that was washed away during the rains last year.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Surface Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari were present at the inauguration of the new bridge.
“The Mumbai-Goa highway plays a vital role for both states. People from Mumbai travel to different parts of the state via this route. That is why we prioritised the construction of the new bridge and finished it in 10 months,” Gadkari said.
Fadnavis, meanwhile, said that four-laning work on the Mumbai-Goa highway will be completed in 2019.
Apart from this, the state government also launched bridge projects worth over Rs 4,500 crore today. These include projects in the Raigad section of Mumbai-Goa highway worth Rs 3,812 crore, besides a slew of other infrastructure works.
