Modi to inaugurate bridge across Pranahita on Mar 6

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the much-awaited inter-State bridge across Pranahita at Arjunagutta in Kotapalli mandal on March 6 using a remote control from Nagpur. Built at a cost of Rs 107.89 crore, the bridge will reduce the distance between Hyderabad and Jagdalpur of Chhattisgarh besides leading to better connectivity between northern Telangana and Maharashtra.

“Around 95 per cent of works were complete. Sixteen pillars were constructed against the total 18 while two slabs and five girders are yet to be erected. They will be built within a month or two. However, the bridge will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister on March 6, considering the model code of conduct to be in force once the schedule of elections to Parliament announced,” an official of National Highways Authority of India (NHIA) said.

The bridge is part of National Highway 63 which passes through Bodhan, Nizamabad, Armoor, Metpalli, Koratla, Jagitiyal, Dharmapuri, Luxettipet, Mancherial and Chennur before entering Maharashtra. Once the bridge goes operational, the risky journey on wooden boats will be a thing of past for the people of Maharashtra and Telangana.

People of bordering Sironcha Taluq in Maharashtra are forced to use boats to reach Chennur for medical needs and groceries. Similarly, citizens of peripheral parts of Chennur in Telangana would use a similar mode of transportation. However, many die as boats capsize in the Pranahita, a tributary of the Godavari.

Meanwhile, work on the 38-km-long stretch on the national highway, stalled due to the movement of Maoists and lack of environmental clearances, gained momentum with the bridge scheduled to be open for public. NHAI issued orders granting Rs 250 crore for the road in 2017.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao and the then Roads and Buildings Minister Thummala Nageswara Rao laid the foundation stone to the 855-m-long bridge on January 30, 2016. While the works were to be completed by November 2018, the same were delayed due to various reasons, including rains.