Muzaffarpur Traffic Jam: People troubled by the jam will have to wait longer. file photo
Jagran correspondent, Muzaffarpur. Railway Overbridge Project: The two much-awaited Railway Overbridge (ROB) schemes, Gobarsahi and Sadpura, proposed to provide relief from traffic jams to the city, have become victims of slow progress due to administrative and technical hurdles. On one hand, Gobarsahi ROB is stuck waiting for NOC despite the tender being finalised, while on the other hand, Sadpura ROB is stuck in the files as the process of re-tender has not started.
Gobarsahi ROB: Awaiting Army's NOC
Almost a year has passed since Gobarsahi ROB got administrative approval. The responsibility of this project was given to the Bridge Construction Corporation. The tender for this project costing about Rs 167 crore has been given to a construction agency of Danapur.
More than three months have passed since the tender was finalized, but the work has not yet started at the ground level. The target to complete the project has been set by the year 2027. Initially there was a delay in giving NOC from NHAI. Now the construction work is not able to start due to lack of No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Army.
According to the Senior Project Engineer of the Bridge Construction Department, the work is likely to start by the end of this month or the first week of next month. The army is being continuously contacted for NOC.
Site survey, public hearing and other formalities have been completed. The agency will reach the site soon with machinery and material and efforts will be made to complete the work within the stipulated time.
Sadpura ROB: File has not progressed yet
Sadpura level crossing is one of the busiest railway crossings in the city. More than a hundred trains and goods trains pass through here every day. As a result, the gate has to be closed every 10-15 minutes, creating severe traffic jams in the surrounding areas.
In view of the traffic pressure, the Road Construction Department had approved the construction of ROB here. Administrative approval was also given to spend about Rs 48 crore on this project. The responsibility of implementation was handed over to the Bridge Construction Department.
However, local people raised objections to the project. He said that due to the construction work, many houses and shops will have to be demolished, which will pose a threat to livelihood. Despite the objections, the department started the tender process.
In the first phase, two bidders submitted tenders, but the tender was canceled after errors were found in the documents of one of them. After this there was talk of re-tender, but the file got stuck at the headquarters level. Even after more than three months have passed, the re-tender process has not started.
Senior Project Engineer said that no new progress has been made in this project till now. The matter is under consideration at the headquarters level and further action will be taken only after receiving instructions from there.
Increased concern of city residents
Both the ROB projects are considered very important from the point of view of traffic management of the city. But due to procedural delays, NOC hurdles and administrative slowness, there is increasing doubt among people whether the schemes will be completed on time or not. If a decision is not taken soon, the hope of relief from the jam may remain incomplete for now.
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