KOCHI: When it comes to railway overbridges (RoBs), it is a mixed bag for Ernakulam. While work on the Vaduthala and Purayar RoBs has begun, the RoB in Atlantis, which received administrative sanction in 2016, remains a non-starter. The project at Akaparambu, announced in September 2024, is also yet to take off.
As per the details shared by Public Works Minister P A Mohamed Riyas in the assembly, work on 24 RoBs is going on in the state.
“Of these, 10 are being constructed by Roads and Bridges Development Corporation Kerala (RBDCK), 13 by Kerala Rail Development Corporation Ltd (KRDCL) and one by the PWD’s national highway wing,” he said.
The list he submitted in the House said initial work of the Vaduthala and Purayar RoBs have begun. There was no mention of Atlantis RoB.
Kochi Mayor M Anilkumar said work on the Atlantis RoB did not start owing to legal issues. “I had invited the representatives of the agencies entrusted with the work for a meeting. They didn’t come. The issue is related to land acquisition,” he said.
Of the 39 holdings that fall under the RoB’s alignment, only 32 have been acquired. The detailed project report of the Atlantis RoB was approved by the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) on November 9, 2018, for an outlay of `89.774 crore. The General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) was approved by the railways on January 30, 2023.
“The land acquisition process began on June 10, 2024,” said an RBDCK source.
In the case of Akaparambu RoB, proposed to come up near the Kochi airport, only soil testing is over, said ward member Abi K K. “The project was announced in September 2024. One year has passed, and we have not received any other notification from authorities,” he said.
He said the Cochin International Airport Ltd is providing `50 crore for the RoB project. “Of this, `15 crore is allocated for land acquisition and `35 crore for the RoB’s construction. The project was earlier entrusted with the RBDCK. Now, the implementing agency is KRDCL,” he said.
Abi said the new overbridge would provide travellers coming from Thrissur side a direct route to the airport, saving them about 5km of commute.