ONE AMONG MANY MAIDENS...

Red and grey would be the colours of the first flyover of the city.

The Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam (BRPNN) is giving final touches to Jagdeopath-Sheikhpura Mor flyover, a first-of-its-kind in Patna. All other flyovers are rail overbridges, which run over the railway tracks.

The pillars and the spans would be painted grey and the railings on the top red. The under-construction flyover is being decked-up for a grand opening.

Initially, the 2.275km-long flyover was scheduled to be inaugurated by the end of this month but it has now been postponed.

Only after the model code of conduct for the Legislative Council polls is lifted in mid-July would the flyover be opened to the public.

The Legislative Council poll for the 24 seats in the state would be conducted on July 7.

While all the pillars have been constructed, only five out of the 95 spans, mostly near the approach roads on Sheikhpura Mor-end, are to be placed. Other finishing works, including painting the pillars and the spans, erecting railings, road-levelling and construction of pavements are being done atop the flyover as well as the base road underneath it.

"We have completed more than 95 per cent of all structural works on the flyover and only the finishing touch is being given to the structure at present. We are ready to inaugurate the flyover on any day after the code of conduct is lifted," said a senior BRPNN engineer associated with the project.

The work on the Jagdeopath-Sheikhpura Mor flyover started in December 2012. The total length of the flyover is 2.275km, including the 300m of approach road. The flyover has two laneswith a width of 25m, the design ensuring that the pillars occupy the minimum space.

The flyover would act as a lifeline between east and west Patna. Rampant encroachment and heavy traffic on the Bailey Road stretch between Jagdeopath and Sheikhpura Mor had paralysed the vehicular movement.

The new flyover has been constructed to decongest the vehicular movement. Moreover, the authorities also anticipate an increase in traffic on Bailey Road once the under-construction Sonepur-Digha rail-cum-road bridge is ready.

The BRPNN engineer said: "We have constructed all the 95 pillars and laid 90 out of the 95 spans. The road atop has also been developed from the western end of the flyover till the entrance of Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, leaving a stretch of around 1km to be completed thereafter."

Deliberating on the status of construction of the approach road, the engineer added: "The walls for developing the approach road have been constructed on both the sides and the ground-filling work has also been done. The work on asphalt and bituminous-based carpeting on the approach road from both sides would start next week."?

BRPNN officials informed that the specifications of the flyover have been made considering the requirement of a parallel traffic movement underneath (on the Bailey Road).

"Asphalt and bituminous-based carpeting has been on almost the entire stretch of Bailey Road underneath the flyover to ensure that vehicles keep moving freely even during the construction period. Besides, the base road would also ensure that vehicular movement is divided equally between it and the flyover," the official said.

Officials are, however, concerned about the encroachment of the parking area being developed underneath the entire stretch of the flyover. The BRPNN is laying paver blocks (small brick-shaped concretes) underneath the flyover to make the longest parking area in the city. But street vendors and squatters have already started to encroach it by putting up their carts and stalls.

"We have written several letters to Patna Municipal Corporation and the district administration to remove the squatters and vendors but no action is being taken. The purpose behind developing such a facility under the flyover is to solve the parking problem in Jagdeopath and Raja Bazaar areas but the encroachment would fail the attempt," said the BRPNN engineer.