'Experts from IIT, Paint Job Worth Rs 2.8 Crore': Howrah Bridge to Undergo Health Audit, Get Makeover

The imposing 80-year-old Howrah Bridge is all set for a rigorous “health check-up” and a new paint job. One of the busiest cantilever bridges of the world, close to 1,00,000 vehicles ply on it while it is used by 1,50,000 pedestrians daily.

“The Howrah Bridge is one of the most beautiful and important bridges; it’s now 80 years old and that’s why it has been decided that it will undergo a health audit. Experts from IIT-Madras and NTCPSC are here to work on it. Apart from a health check-up, we will also be painting the bridge,” Rathendra Raman, chairman of Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata, told News18.

According to sources, this is not the first time that the bridge will undergo a health check-up. In 1983, too, such a health audit was conducted by RITES and completed in 2003. Back then, the next audit was scheduled for 2023.

The iconic bridge, which is a significant part of the Kolkata skyline, witnesses a massive amount of traffic between Howrah and Kolkata. Hence, the bridge will not be closed during the health audit and all precautions will be taken so that the public does not face any inconvenience.

The bridge will also get a new paint job, which takes place every seven years. Here’s how this will work:

1. The Howrah Bridge, or Rabindra Setu, is painted at an interval of six to seven years as a protective measure
2. The corroded portion of the bridge gets two coats of yellow zinc chromate primer before the application of the main aluminium paint. The dry film thickness of each coat is 35 microns
3. Aluminium paint is used to paint a total surface area of about 2 lakh sq m; the dry film thickness of each coat is 25 microns
4. The total quantity of aluminium paint used last time was close to 29,000 litres while 4,000 litres of yellow zinc chromate was also consumed
5. The riverside and curbside railings on the bridge deck are painted with chlorinated rubber paint to protect it from the effects of toxic weather
6. Last time, the work of painting the bridge was completed in six months. Close to 120 workers and painters were engaged daily
7. To ensure quality control, the National Test House was appointed as a third party quality control agency the last two times. This time, the estimated cost of the paint job is Rs 2.8 crore. Last time, in 2015, it was done at a cost of Rs 1.3 crore.