Jaleswar: The tardy pace of construction of a railway foot-over-bridge (FOB) in Jaleswar area of Balasore has trigged resentment among people, who have been facing commuting problems over years.
The foot-over-bridge is said to be a great reliever of traffic jams at the level crossing for people going to Jaleswar, Dantun, Kharagpur, Raibania, Gopiballabhpur, Chandaneswar and Digha.
Locals had been protesting over traffic jams and demanded a foot-over-bridge. Former MP Rabindra Kumar Jena and MLA Aswini Kumar Patra had taken up the issue with the state government in 2015.
An estimate for the project was drawn up. It was pegged at Rs 61.95 crore. The project entails construction of 31 pillars and an approach road. Its cost has been shared by the state and Central governments.
The state government awarded the construction of 27 pillars to a contractor while the Railways will construct the remaining four.
Its work was started July 20, 2018 and was to be completed by July 19, 2020.
The project construction was started two years ago, but even one-fourth of its work has not been completed till date, though only six months are left till the deadline, a report said.
Meanwhile, its cost was revised at Rs 63.81 crore. Though there is no need for private land acquisition for the project, yet its work has slowed down. It is said that an OPTCL tower line is said to be a hurdle in the bridge construction. A tender was agreed for it at Rs 2.1 crore to remove the tower line.
Meanwhile, the contractor has sought permission from the government to extend its deadline to June 30, 2021.
As the bridge work faces inordinate delays, locals warned of agitation. They demanded expeditious work of the foot bridge.
