ROURKELA: The Works department has further pushed the completion target of the much-awaited Koel bridge project between Rourkela and Kuanrmunda to March 2027.
This will be the sixth extension for the project which was originally slated to be completed by December 2022. The delayed project, funded by the Sundargarh District Mineral Foundation (DMF), is being executed by the Roads and Buildings (R&B) Division of the Works department through its contract firm.
Sources in the Works department said as of now, six of the total 14 spans remain to be cast. Piers for four spans have been erected and work is underway to install the fifth pillar. The drawing of the sixth pillar is awaiting the department’s approval.
During project execution three years ago, there was difficulty in setting up three of the six remaining piers in the middle of the well foundation due to technical reasons. Subsequently with due approval, the well foundations of the problematic piers were finally replaced with pile foundation structures to achieve depth of 32 to 35 metres. Accordingly, the designs of the remaining three pillars were also readjusted to cause the additional delay, the sources added.
Panposh sub-divisional officer (SDO) of R&B Division Nityanand Singh said after monsoon, work would resume in full swing from October with completion target of March 2027. “No cost overrun is permissible as per the contract agreement. We are expecting approval of the reworked design of one remaining pier soon,” he added.
Work on the project commenced in mid-2020 at a cost of around Rs 28.85 crore with initial completion target of December 2022. Once completed, the bridge, would connect the Panposh Sports Hostel (PSH) at Rourkela with NH-143 at Jamunanaki in the industrial cluster of Kuanrmunda.