The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will have to face a surge in the cost of Central Railway's Hancock Bridge reconstruction as the project will cost the civic body an extra ₹25 crore. In 2016, Hancock Bridge, which is situated near Sandhurst Road station, was found dangerous and therefore, the bridge was razed down by Central Railway.
Since the last three years, the reconstruction work is going on, at a snail's pace. Owing to the issues caused by the slow construction work, the cost for the project has also increased now. Heavier iron girders and a extension in the work to build a proper base for the bridge, the reconstruction of Hancock Bridge will cost Railways an extra ₹25.71 crore.
Including all the taxes and costs, the proposed price for the reconstrcuted bridge has gone up from ₹51 crore to ₹77 crore.
Also Read: Construction Of Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link To End By September 2022
After the bridge was razed down, BMC appointed a contractor for reconstruction but soon, the railway authorities asked BMC to stop the construction of Hancock bridge in Mazgaon as the contractor was involved in a corruption case. This was a certain hurdle for the construction project.
However, with appointment of new contractor – Sai Project – for the construction by BMC Standing Committee, the work quickly began again. The company was provided with a contract to reconstruct the bridge for a cost of ₹51 crore, which has witnessed an increase recently.
Earlier, the girders which were to be used for the project, weughed 660 metric tons but after the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)- Bombay advised Railways, the rail corporation directed to change the design of the girders. As a result, the weight of the girders increased from 660-metric tons to 1374-metric tons, which resulted in an increase in the cost of the reconstruction.
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