KOZHIKODE: After a two-decade long wait, the Panniyankara rail-over-bridge (ROB), an integral part of the proposed monorail project, opened to traffic on Sunday. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the ROB in the presence of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) chief advisor E. Shreedharan and PWD minister G. Sudhakaran. The CM vowed to strengthen the infrastructure in the state which is the backbone of industrial growth.
“It was a great effort on the part of DMRC to complete the construction below the estimated cost,” Mr Vijayan said. Minister Sudhakaran said that a massive Rs 70,000 crore had been earmarked for PWD works which included the widening of NH from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasargod. The 600-metre long ROB has been completed at an expenditure of Rs 10 crore. It was in 1995 that the Panniyankara area development committee was formed demanding an ROB to ease the traffic congestion.
Speaking on the occasion, E. Shreedharan said that completion of the work depended on the speed of acquisition of the land needed for the project. The proposed light metro, covering a distance of 13.30 km from Meenchanda to Medical College will have 14 stations including Panniyankara. Ministers T.P Ramakrishnan, A.K Saseendran, Mayor Thottathil Raveendran among others were present.
