The Major Irrigation department will submit a report to the District Collector delineating its suggestions and concerns over the four bridges under its purview in connection with the widening of National Highway 66 based on a field inspection conducted by the department with other stakeholders at three points along the route on Friday.
The report is likely to leave to the State government a call on maintaining a vertical clearance of five metres for bridges as prescribed by the Coastal Shipping and Inland Navigation department (CSIND) for feeder canals supporting national waterways ensuring that the existing or potential navigation is left unhindered. The field visit was conducted by officials of the Major Irrigation department, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the company entrusted with the design, construction, and maintenance of the road over the next 15 years on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis, and the North Paravur municipal authorities based on a meeting chaired by District Collector N.S.K. Umesh on Thursday.
The inspection covered two bridges — a main bridge and a service road bridge — at Kuriapilly, Paravur bridge, and Cheriapilly bridge. None of these bridges has a vertical clearance of 5 metres as prescribed by the CSIND. “Whether the prescribed vertical clearance should be made applicable in the case of these bridges is better left to the higher authorities at the government level,” said sources.
However, the NHAI and the company had concerns about last-minute changes since the design part is already over and the construction is at various stages. To effect changes at this stage, they fear, may entail economical and logistical challenges.
Notwithstanding those concerns, the Major Irrigation department, however, remains reluctant to overlook the clearance issues with consequences for navigation in view of the turn of events during the 2018 deluge. Optimisation of vertical clearance is being preferred considering that during a flood-like situation road transport would be affected leaving evacuation or marooned people by and large through waterways.
Two other bridges along NH 66 under the purview of the Major Irrigation department, however, have adequate clearance as they already facilitate navigation through waterbodies that form part of national waterways.
