Work on the new bridge across the Korappuzha connecting Kozhikode and Kannur districts is in final stages and it is expected to be thrown open for traffic in February, Transport Minister A.K. Saseendran has said.
The Minister held a meeting here on Monday to review the work and later visited the site. Mr. Saseendran directed the officials to solve the dispute over removing silt from the river. It was also decided to convene another meeting on February 28 to discuss a detailed plan to finish the work on the bridge.
The original bridge was constructed in 1940 following the efforts of Gandhian freedom fighter K. Kelappan, who was then head of the Malabar District Board. The government decided to demolish the old structure after it become weak, and replace it with a new bridge. The Kerala Road Fund Board and the national highway division are into the construction and the funds are allocated by the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board. The project cost is ₹26 crore.
The new bridge is 12-metre wide and there are 1.5-metre-wide footpaths on either side. Each of the seven spans of the bridge is 32-metre long and 12-metre wide. There are 150-metre-long approach roads on both sides of the bridge. There are service roads as well, a release said.
