New lifeline for Kochiites opens tomorrow

KOCHI: The much-awaited Venduruthy-Vikrant Bridge will be inaugurated at Katari Bagh by Defence Minister A K Antony on Saturday. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will preside over the function. Union Minister K V Thomas, Public Works Minister V K Ebrahim Kunj and Excise Minister K Babu will be present at the function.The bridge will act as the main connectivity for West Kochi to the main land. PWD officials said that heavy vehicles especially container lorries were not able to pass through the old bridge as it was in a dilapidated state. “Owing to this, such vehicles had to be diverted through the UP bridge. This issue will be addressed with the opening up of the new bridge,” the officials said.The two-lane traffic bridge connecting Ernakulam with Willingdon Island is 625 metres long, having a carriageway of 7.5 metres and 1.50-metre footpath on both the sides. It has a total width of 11.23 metres. The construction of the new bridge had started after a dredger hit the pillar of the old bridge. The bridge is built at an expense of `37.50 crore. The Venduruthy-Vikrant bridge was built with the joint effort of the Public Works Department (PWD) and the Indian Navy. The project was  completed using the funds from the Kerala Road Fund Board and also with the Navy’s contribution of `12 crore.The construction of the bridge was started in January 2006 and it was supposed to be completed within two years. But the construction of the underpass between Katari Bagh and the Naval Command and the relocation of  the potable water supply pipeline which took ample time delayed the project.MPs P Rajeev and Charles Dias, Mayor Tony Chammany, MLAs Hibi Eden and Dominic Presentation, District Collector P I Sheik Pareeth, PWD secretary Manoj Joshi, Cochin Port Trust chairman Paul Antony, Cochin Shipyard  chairman Commodore Karthik Subramaniam, Corporation Opposition Leader K J Jacob, councillors N Venugopal and Elizabeth will take part in the function. Vice-Admiral K N Sushil, Flag Officer of the Southern Naval Command, will deliver the felicitation address.