The new underpass at Phuleswari (Bharatnagar) railway crossing. A Telegraph picture

Siliguri, Oct. 3: The Mahabirsthan flyover would be ready by March next year, promised state urban development and municipal affairs minister Asok Bhattacharya.

?The work is going on at a good pace and we hope to have the flyover ready by March next year,? Bhattacharya said. ?We are not getting the right cooperation from the railways. But if they help us, we will be able to open the flyover in time.?

Work on the flyover connecting the two parts of the town, being commissioned by the Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority and the railways, started in July.

Bhattacharya was speaking at the inauguration of the underpass at Bharatnagar near here. The minister also inaugurated a bridge over the Jorapani near here. Both the projects have been commissioned by the SJDA, in collaboration with the Siliguri Municipal Corporation and the railways.

?The underpass will remove traffic snarls in the area that result from the level crossing being closed for trains to pass,? he said.

The rise in rail traffic following the conversion of the metre-gauge to broad-gauge and the extension of the route till Alipurduar, triggered a huge traffic problem in the Mahabirsthan area. The underpass and the flyover are government initiatives to meet the problem. Built at a cost of Rs 87 lakh, the project has been completed in one year.

The bridge over the Jorapani has been built to connect Bharatnagar with New Jalpaiguri connector of Eastern Bypass. Also built at a cost of Rs 87 lakh, the bridge has been completed in 18 months. ?We plan to extend the road from NJP till Vivekananda Road via the Jorapani bridge upto Burdwan Road. It will be parallel to Hill Cart Road. We also plan to build another bridge over the Mahananda and connect the road with Matigara,? Bhattacharya added.