A flyover right through college campus

It is expected to ease traffic congestion on Bandar Road

Making way: Work apace on the flyover that passes through the VR Siddhartha Engineering College at Kanuru in Vijayawada.

Velagapudi Ramakrishna Siddhartha Engineering College, united AP’s first private engineering college, is paving the way for a major public infrastructure that would cut through its campus.

A flyover of about 300 meters length would pass through the autonomous institute in which thousands of students enrol every year for professional courses. The works, taken up by the college management --Siddhartha Academy of General and Technical Education (SAGTE) -- began a few weeks ago.

The flyover is a part of the 3.3-km new Pantakaluva Road that connects Autonagar’s 100 ft road and Tadigadapa-Enikepadu Road via Sanath Nagar, Kanuru and the college. The road follows the course of the defunct irrigation stream (pantakaluva). However, the part of the stream passing through the college campus turned a bone of contention when the CRDA officials proposed to lay the road as an alternative to Bandar Road between Autonagar and Tadigadapa.

Bone of contention

While the entire road has been laid, construction of the part on the college premises remained pending for a long time. Initially, the students and alumni of the college opposed the move as it would separate the college’s administrative block, auditorium, library and main entrance from rest of the college. Locals of Kanuru demanded completion of the project and also staged protests.

The college management which initially proposed to lay a subway later offered to build a flyover bridge above the pantakaluva on the campus. The management then moved High Court which asked Capital Region Development Authority not to proceed with laying of the road on the campus and consider the proposal of the management.

“The works have been recently commenced and it takes about one year for completion. The college management is building the flyover at a cost of ₹11 crore. It will have a two-lane road spanning a length of 350 metres,” CRDA executive engineer M. Venkata Subba Rao told The Hindu.

The flyover consists of 11 piers that will be raised on the campus. “We are constructing it with our funds and the work has just begun. It will join the road (Pantakaluva road) with 100 ft road of New Autonagar,” SAGTE vice-president M. Rajaiah said recently. Completion of the flyover work is expected to ease traffic movement on the Bandar Road.