Extradose bridge on DMRC Barakhamba-Indraprastha sec nearly complete

New Delhi, Sep 13 (UNI) In what can be termed as another "Feather in the cap" for the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, the DMRC is on verge of completing work on what is India's first extradosed bridge over the railway line at Pragati Maidan, an important part of its "soon-to-be-opened" Barakhamba-Indraprastha section.

The construction work on the complex bridge, which has pushed back the opening date of the section by more a month, from September to October end, is now nearing completion, DMRC spokesperson Anuj Dyal said.

A considerable amount of time went into construction of the "extra dozed bridge", which connects the metro network between Pragati Maidan and I P estate, the last metro station on the 2.8 km stretch which will have three stations- Mandi House, Pragati Maidan and I P Estate.

What made construction on the stretch difficult than the other stretches having railway crossings in between was the fact that the railway crossing at Pragati Maidan was majorly busy one with all important trains going towards Mumbai and Eastern India passing through it. This made it almost impossible to block the route even for a single day to facilitate construction of the metro bridge.

''About 200 trains, including all important trains going towards Western and Eastern India, pass on the track below the bridge evryday. Because of this, the train movement could not be stopped even for a single day and no pier could be put in between the train tracks. In addition, the bridge has a 302 m radius curvature as required by the alignment. Also, the main span was kept long to allow for future expansion of the railway lines,''Mr Dayal said.

This is only the second bridge of its kind being made over a railway crossing for MRTS, the first being built in Japan.

The construction of the complicated 93 m viaduct over the railway crossing without any piers involved a longer time than usual, thus leading to the slight delays.

However, now, the construction of the bridge, which started in February, is almost complete. About ten engineers of DMRC and over 230 workers were involved in the construction wich was done under trying circumstances like taking care not to disturb overhead electricity lines of the Railways.

The design of the bridge was done by French consultant Systra and independently checked by DMRC. The cost of the bridge, including the design, is about Rs 6.5 crore, Mr Dayal said.

With the work on the bridge expected to complete shortly, the DMRc aims to start this section by the first week of November, before the commencement of the India International Trade Fair on November 14 so that people visiting the fair can avail of the Metro services, Mr Dayal said.

While the stretch will be underground from Barakhamba to Mandi house, that between Pragati Maidan and I P Estate will be elevated. From Mandi house, the line will emerge from under the ground on a ramp.

Mr Dayal said the section was being commissioned in 26 months only, whereas underground sections take 48 months and elevated sections need 36 months at least usually.

The starting of the stretch which will have three stations- Mandi House, Pragati Maidan and I P Estate, would facilitate lakhs of officegoers from East Delhi areas who commute daily to their offices in and around Connaught Place.

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