Goa: Ailing Manohar Parrikar inspects work on Mandovi bridge, to be ready by Jan 12

Panaji, Dec 17: Ailing Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar inspected an under-construction bridge on Mandovi River, the first time he has been seen in public since returning to the state on October 14 post hospitalization in Delhi's AIIMS.

He later inspected the work of a bridge over Zuari River near Agassaim village, near the capital.

Parrikar, who is suffering from a pancreatic ailment, has been recuperating at his private residence near here since October 14 and this is the first time he has moved out of the house, officials said.

The chief minister began his inspection of the bridge at around 3.30pm on Sunday accompanied by his son Utpal, three doctors and his personal
secretary Rupesh Kamat.

"The chief minister stopped the car four times and even got down twice to see the view from the top of the bridge," Kamat told TOI. "The chief minister asked the contractors to complete the bridge by January 12." Parrikar is understood to have ordered L&T to complete the illumination of the bridge by this year­end.

The opposition Congress has been alleging that Parrikar's ailment and his absence from office had brought the coastal state's administration to a standstill.