Warangal: A long pending demand of residents of Warangal for a new rail over bridge between Kazipet and Hanamkonda on the National Highway 163 has finally received a go-ahead with the persistence of local leaders.
Administrative sanction for an amount of Rs 78 crore has been given through GO No. 539. The new RoB would be built parallel to the existing old bridge at Railway km 365/31-33 of Kazipet-Ballarsha section.
Located on the highway connecting Warangal and Hyderabad, the section had been a cause for trouble and pain to road users since years but no efforts were put in to repair or to expand it. The area sees frequent traffic jams. If a vehicle breaks down in the middle, the log jam would be several kilometres long. Traffic police, too, find managing traffic on the bridge tricky.
Being the oldest bridge in the city, it has developed cracks and is in a dilapidated condition. Even though the demand has been there since a long time, the successive governments failed to address it.
Local leaders like Deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari and Warangal West MLA Dasyam Vinay Bhaskar took up the issue with Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao and were instrumental in getting the sanction for the new bridge.
“Though the railway department agreed to construction of a parallel bridge, they abandoned the move as they could not fund the new bridge with another bridge already being functional and in use,” said Mr Kadiam Srihari.
“Now the entire burden of funding the bridge has fallen on the state government. However, heeding to our appeals, the CM has consented to the proposals and approved the project. I thank him on behalf of the people of Warangal,” he added.
Warangal West MLA Dasyam Vinay Bhaskar thanked the Fatima Church and St. Gabriel School managements for giving the required the land for the RoB.
He said the state government is dedicated towards the development of tricities. “Though part of the tricities, Kazipet has remained underdeveloped for a long time. We are taking steps to develop this area also on par with Warangal and Hanamkonda,” he said.
Warangal Mayor Nannapuneni Narender said the bridge would help in development of the city apart from helping ease the traffic. It was the need of the hour, he said.
