April 11: A public infrastructure project in Calcutta that was for once on track to meet its completion target has stumbled on railway bureaucracy in its last lap.

The 4.4km Garden Reach flyover that promises to be a decongestant for chock-a-block traffic on Circular Garden Reach Road is being held up by a pending technical clearance for a 25-metre stretch that is to run over a portion of elevated rail tracks.

Contractor Larsen & Toubro has warned that each day's delay in getting permission from the railways to start building that stretch would mean a less realistic chance of completing the flyover by July. The design had been submitted for approval to the railways through the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority last September.

"We need to raise two piers for that 25-metre stretch. If we do not get permission to do so by this month, we will miss the July deadline for sure," said an engineer associated with the project.

On the Calcutta side, the flyover takes off from near Majherhat station off Diamond Harbour Road. The other end is at the Brooklyn crossing near Ramnagar. The hitch is in the Majherhat section, where the main arm of the flyover and a ramp leading to Remount Road are to meet over a portion of tracks that come under Calcutta Circular Railway.

Urban development minister Firhad Hakim, who has helped clear land logjams plaguing Metro projects, said he was aware that the flyover's inauguration could get delayed by a couple of months. "We are awaiting permission from the railways. Besides, some people have to be evicted from the construction site near Jainkunj. We have already assigned this task to the port trust authorities," he told Metro.

A spokesperson for Eastern Railway said the proposal received from L&T had been forwarded to the Railway Board. "Permission for construction above the Circular Railway tracks will come from the Railway Board," said Ravi Mahapatra, chief public relations officer at Eastern Railway.

The average height of the flyover is 10 metres, but it rises 20 metres above the ground at two places. One of these portions is where the flyover would go above the Circular Railway tracks.

For those bearing the brunt of snarls on Circular Garden Reach Road, the Rs 306-crore flyover is expected to provide a hassle-free commute from Majherhat near Diamond Harbour Road to Ramnagar in less than 10 minutes. The road in use runs in a different direction and currently takes between 30 and 40 minutes to cover, mainly because of heavy port traffic.

Motorists coming towards central, north and south Calcutta from Garden Reach would also have an easier commute once the flyover opens. Trailers, containers, buses and autorickshaws would have to continue using Circular Garden Reach Road.

A police officer posted in the port area said segregation of corridors for small cars and heavy vehicles would benefit both types of traffic. "Containers are currently allowed to ply between 8am and noon, and again between 5pm to 8pm. Once the flyover opens, we might allow them to use Circular Garden Reach Road throughout the day."

The restrictions took effect last year to ease traffic in the afternoon. Snarls still occur, though not as much as before.

Road repairs are currently underway at several places in Garden Reach, slowing down traffic along an area dotted with warehouses of private companies and the Calcutta Port Trust.

Police officers said regulating the entry of large containers and goods vehicles was not an easy task in a commercial zone.

Besides the main flyover, L&T is building a ramp for vehicles coming towards central Calcutta. The ramp will terminate at the Remount Road crossing, from where city-bound traffic can come straight to Bhukailash in Kidderpore.

The scope of the project includes widening the road between Ramnagar and the Brooklyn crossing.