13 rail overbridges to be completed by 2012

KOCHI: With the weekly monitoring of all the rail overbridge (ROB) projects of the Roads and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala (RBDCK), the ongoing work of 13 bridges in the state will be completed in 2012. It will also complete three of them this year. The RBDCK has taken an initiative to monitor the progress of construction works every week by posting the pictures and details of all its projects on the website. Also, the progress of the work is evaluated and discussions are being held with the engineers on a weekly basis.M Beena, managing director, RBDCK, told Express that the new system helped the officials to monitor the works from the office. The progress of the work can also be examined by the public from the website.The ROBs at Sulthanpet in Palakkad will be completed in September-October, 2011 and at Koratty and Parappanangadi by the 2011 end.The other projects which will be completed next year are the ROBs at Kainatty, Mulamkunnathukavu, Payyannur, Anayara-Petta, Cheruvathur,  Devdhar, Ponnurunni, Pulianam, Koyilandy and Thirunavaya.Four-lane coastal ocean driveOne of the prestigious projects of the RBDCK, a four-lane coastal ocean drive highway from Ponnurunni to Vengalam is awaiting government clearance. A detailed project report has been submitted to the government in this regard. Ex-Finance Minister Thomas Isaac had announced financial assistance for the project in the Budget.The proposed road will save 40-km, 2-hrs of journey. The total length of the road is 72.37 km with seven-metre service road.The advantage of the proposed road is that it passes through the agricultural and thinly- populated area, minor towns and major towns with moderately built-up area. The majority of the affected families would be from the fisherfolk. The proposed rehabilitation would not disturb their occupation, Beena remarked.The total cost of the project is estimated at Rs 2,42,500 lakh, which includes Rs 1,82,450 lakh  towards the cost of road development and allied works and Rs 60,050 lakh for the acquisition of land, and rehabilitation and resettlement.The project is proposed to be executed under the BOT model. The BOT partner needs to recover his cost of development, along with the operational expenses and profit, within the BOT period.The revenue from the operation of the road is limited to the toll collected from vehicles.  An average toll of  Rs 50 for a passenger car unit can be collected for the entire length of the road. The anticipated traffic is nearly 40 lakh in a year with a growth of 7.5 per cent every year.