The Hindu : Front Page : Bandra-Worli sea link to be named after Rajiv Gandhi

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Wednesday, Jul 01, 2009
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Bandra-Worli sea link to be named after Rajiv Gandhi

— Photo: PTI/ Shirish Shete

Big plans for the city: Congress president Sonia Gandhi walks down the Bandra-Worli sea link after inaugurating it in Bandra, Mumbai, on Tuesday. Dedicating the country’s first sea bridge to the nation, Ms. Gandhi said her party’s aim was to develop the metropolis as one of the best cities in the world.

Mumbai: With the promise of better infrastructure in urban centres and improved healthcare in rural areas, Sonia Gandhi, chairperson of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) declared open the Bandra-Worli sea link here on Tuesday.

Offering a vision of “Bharat Nirman,” she said schemes like the Urban Renewal Mission and the Rural Health Mission, proved that power was not an end for the UPA, but was instead the means to serve the people.

Ms. Gandhi was addressing a mammoth gathering at the Rang Sharda grounds in suburban Bandra, after unveiling two plaques at the entrance of the bridge.

Thanks people

This being her first visit to the city after the victory in the Lok Sabha polls, she thanked the people of Mumbai for their support.

She congratulated the people behind the engineering feat, from the engineers to the labourers, and dedicated the structure to the citizens of Mumbai.

The function saw a number of political heavyweights including Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, Union Power Minister Shushil Kumar Shinde, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal and several other prominent State Ministers.

Adding a political masterstroke to the event, Mr. Pawar proposed naming the sea link after Rajiv Gandhi, an idea which was welcomed.

Mr. Chavan endorsed the proposal and made an announcement to that effect.

Mr. Pawar likened the state-of-the-art cable-stayed bridge to the ones in San Francisco.

“It is an example of the miracles engineers are capable of,” he said.

In the backdrop of the new architectural marvel, the leaders spoke of the UPA’s vision for Mumbai as an international financial hub with advanced facilities. “Mumbai is an embodiment of secularism. The city becoming an international financial centre will be a matter of great pride for the citizens of this country. This can happen only when development work is ongoing. The sea link will ease the traffic woes of the people and enhance the city’s beauty,” Ms. Gandhi said.

The sea link is being hailed for reducing the travel time from Bandra to Worli to seven minutes from the current 40. This could help save fuel and reduce pollution. An estimated 50,000 vehicles are set to ply on the eight-lane wonder, Vimalatai Mundada, Minister for Public Works Department, said.

The Chief Minister announced that there won’t be any toll for the first five days.

Corrections and Clarifications

A late correction. The caption of a standalone PTI photograph "Mumbai's new landmark" (July 1, 2009, page1) said the Bandra-Worli sea link is the country's first sea bridge. The Bandra-Worli eight-lane 5.6 km sea bridge is the second sea bridge of India. (It is India's first cable-stayed sea bridge.) The first one is the two-lane 2.3 km Pamban bridge that connects Rameswaram island with the mainland. (The Pamban bridge refers to both the road bridge and the cantilever railway bridge, though primarily it means the latter, and which we had pointed out in this column on July 10, 2009.)

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