: The 102-year-old bridge at Vandiperiyar will soon get a heritage tag as it continues to be the main link on the National Highway 220 between Kollam and Theni. It connects the main road across the Periyar and facilitates large-scale goods movement from Tamil Nadu.
The bridge was constructed by the British as the area had large tea plantations. It is the only century-old bridge on the National Highway. At present, traffic through the bridge is restricted to one way. Long queues of vehicles on the approach road, especially during peak hours, are a regular sight here.
“After the construction of a new bridge close to it, the only remaining functional bridge built by the British on the National Highway will turn a monument,” said an official of the National Highways Authority of India.
He said it had been decided to conserve the bridge as a monument as it had completed 100 years. Land acquisition for the new bridge was completed in a short time as the people in the vicinity had voluntarily surrendered land for the new bridge. The old bridge is not weak, but it is restricted to one-way traffic, he said. It is an architecture marvel as there are iron railings and space on either side where pedestrians can stand when vehicles move by. The road (part of Kottayam-Kumily) became popular with the construction of the Mullaperiyar dam.
There were two more bridges on the Kottayam-Kattappana road constructed by the British, which were replaced later. One was the Karuntharuvi bridge and the other at Karinkulam Chappathu. The bridges were constructed at a time when vehicular traffic along the route was less.
