Karimnagar: Cable bridge remains ornamental
The bridge, which was built at a cost of Rs. 224 crore and opened exactly two years ago, has been in poor condition. The dynamic lights are not functioning for a year and a half making it pitch black at night. The asphalt layer on the cable bridge has come off just a year after it was opened, making it difficult to move on the road.
Despite several repairs in two years, the problem has not been resolved. The maintenance of the cable bridge has not been undertaken by the contractor, the Municipal Corporation, SUDA, or government departments, and the project worth crores of rupees has been left in the lurch. It seems that the electricity bill is already pending there for more than three crores
As part of the Manair Riverfront Project undertaken to develop Karimnagar City as a tourist hub, the previous government started the construction of a 500-meter-long cable bridge between Karimnagar-Sadashivpalli at a cost of Rs. 184 crore in 2018. A dynamic lighting system was installed at a cost of Rs. 8 crore so that the cable bridge could be seen from a distance of kilometers at night, along with two large screens. This was the main attraction of the cable bridge.
On June 21, 2023, the then ministers KTR and Gangula Kamalakar inaugurated this bridge with a bang. After that, cultural programmes were organized on weekends under the name 'Masti'. Due to the poor condition of the road and the lack of lights, the city people stopped coming to the bridge. The bridge has become a haven for boozers.
It is noteworthy that no one has taken the responsibility of maintaining the Karimnagar Cable Bridge. It is reported that a private company has taken up the construction work of the bridge on a built and operate, transfer (BOT) basis. It is known that the said company is limited to completing the construction, lighting the dynamic lighting and handing it over to the government.
After this, who should take care of the maintenance of the cable bridge? Who is responsible for security on the bridge? Who should ensure that it is clean? There is no clarity on this issue. The R&B department should hand over the bridge maintenance to the Municipal Corporation or SUDA. It is known that the officers of both the departments have not expressed their willingness. Also, due to the traffic island being created at the lower side of the cable bridge without any foresight, vehicles going from there to the Rajiv Road bypass road to Hyderabad are also plying, resulting in frequent accidents and many deaths.
Meanwhile, the previous government sanctioned Rs. 500 crore for the construction of a riverfront in the name of Manair Riverfront development works in Karimnagar city within a radius of about four kilometers in connection with the cable bridge. Out of this, the Tourism Department released Rs. 100 crore and the Irrigation Department released Rs. 100 crore. The contractor was negligent and not following the quality standards in the construction work. The bills were paid before the work was even completed. It is known that corruption and irregularities took place in the construction.
When check dams were constructed within the riverfront area, they were completely washed away by the rains during the rainy season. Even after the check dams were breached, funds were released for the construction of the riverfront. Even after five years, these works are still not completed.
Recently, CPI leader Chada Venkata Reddy met the Chief Minister and appealed to him to conduct a vigilance inquiry into the corruption and irregularities in the Manair riverfront works, the role of the contractor concerned and the role of the previous rulers.
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