Patna: The pontoon bridge parallel to Gandhi Setu will be disassembled on June 21, increasing vehicle load on the Setu and the new JP Setu.

"Every year before the arrival of monsoon, the pontoon bridge is disassembled as a precautionary measure as water level on the Ganga is in spate and could cause the pontoon bridge to get washed away," said Sunil Kumar, an official with the Bihar Rajya Pul Nirman Nigam Ltd (BRPNNL), a nodal agency of the bridge.

At present, the pontoon bridge shoulders the load of 12,000 light vehicles daily. But those will now shift to Gandhi Setu, which is in bad shape as its restructuring is on. Only the eastern flank of Gandhi Setu is functional; the western flank has been shut down.

"We'll take all possible steps to streamline traffic after disassembling of the pontoon bridge," Patna district magistrate (DM) Kumar Ravi told The Telegraph. "The pontoon bridge was taking the load of light vehicles and I don't think that people will have to face much problems because JP Setu is capable of taking the load."

As things stands now, the ministry of road transport & highways is carrying out restructuring of the Setu. It has selected AFCONS-SIBMOST JV to execute the project. The rehabilitation work entails dismantling the Setu superstructure and replacing it with a steel structure at Rs 1,382.40 crore and the date of completion is May 18, 2020. The agency is, at present, dismantling the western flank of the Setu, which is expected to be ready by December 2018.

The road construction department has written to the district administration and traffic police, informing them about disassembling of the pontoon bridge and urging them to make necessary arrangements to regulate traffic on Gandhi and JP Setu.

An inspector-rank officer of the traffic police said: "The traffic SP will soon come out with a detailed plan. Extra traffic police will be deployed and we will also take the help of community police."

There is some relief for commuters after plying of heavy vehicles on the 5.5km-long Gandhi Setu was stopped. Heavy vehicles like trucks carrying sand, thermo-mechanically treated (TMT) bars, stone chips, bricks or gas cylinders are strictly prohibited.

"It would be a tough task for the traffic police to regulate traffic because at least 12,000 vehicles will automatically shift on these two bridges. However, the pain is just for four months because in the first week of November, the pontoon bridge will again be assembled," said another BRPNNL official.