A solution seems to be in sight to the stalemate over the transfer of defence land required to complete construction of a multi-level road over bridge (ROB) near Tiruchi junction following a recent high-level meeting between State Highways officials and the Ministry of Defence in New Delhi.
Defence officials have reportedly agreed to transfer the land required for the ROB after obtaining an undertaking from the State government to provide “alternative land of equal value,” as the project has been stalled for a long time, sources in the Highways department told The Hindu here on Tuesday.
An agreement is expected to be signed between the State government and the Ministry soon based on decisions arrived at the meeting between Joint Secretary (Lands and Works), Department of Defence, and State Highways Secretary S.K. Prabakar and other officials a few days ago, the sources added.
“We expect to get enter upon permission (to take up work on the defence land) in about a month or so,” an official said.
Public resentment has been growing in Tiruchi over the inordinate delay in transfer of a piece of land sought by the State Highways from the Defence Ministry. Construction of the first stage of the bridge remains suspended for several months now as the Ministry is yet to clear the land transfer. Nearly 90% of the project has been completed except the Chennai arm of the bridge, which has to be connected to a new approach road to be laid across the defence land. Pending completion of the Chennai arm, the other arms of the bridge too could not be opened to traffic fully.
The Highways department had sought 2,685 sq mt of defence land for the project that is being executed in two stages in association with the railways. In the first stage, a new three-lane road over bridge with five arms is being built. The old bridge will be dismantled in the next stage to build a new bridge with two arms. The first stage of the bridge is expected to be completed within three months once the Highways department is given permission to resume work.
The first stage of the project was originally scheduled to be completed by February 2017, but overshot the deadline due to delays in land transfers initially from the railways and then from the Defence Ministry. Although the State government has agreed to offer land of equal value, an agreement is yet to be reached over suitable land.
“We have been facing much hardship as the bridge remains incomplete for a long time. The Defence Ministry should hand over the land expeditiously and pave the way for completion of the bridge, ” said R.Gopalakrishnan, a resident of K.K.Nagar.
For more than two years now, Highways and district authorities along with elected representatives have been pushing hard to get the small piece of land so that the Chennai arm of the ROB can be completed.
Tiruchi MP Su.Thirunavakkarasar says he has been pursuing the matter and will follow it up with the Defence Ministry to ensure early transfer of land.
