The alternative foot overbridge at Elphinstone Road station on the Western Railway (WR) will be built by January 31, 2018, said Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday. Fadnavis was taking a tour of the station with Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday morning.
“We have sought the help of Indian Defence forces in building the alternative bridge at the station. We will also make additional bridges at stations including Ambivali and Currey Road railway stations on the Central Railway in Mumbai in the same period,” he said.
As many as 23 commuters lost their lives in a stampede at the existing foot overbridge at Elphinstone Road station on the Western Railway last month. The Minister had then assured completion of the work on the bridge in a year.
“We are seeking help from the armed forces to ensure we finish completion on the work of the bridge at the earliest. We are thankful the help has been extended to us by them,” Fadnavis added
Goyal spoke on how a multidisciplinary audit of the various railway station was conducted to assess the need for additional passenger amenities at railway stations. The reports on the same have been sent to the railway Board last week by both Central (CR) and Western Railways (WR).
“After the discussion with BJP Mumbai president Ashish Shelar on October 6, we realised that there was an urgent need to develop passenger amenities at certain railway station at the earliest. We have decided to utilise military precision to work on completing the work of bridges. These three bridges at these stations have been specifically identified as they record higher footfall.” Goyal added.
“The army has always been steadfast in the provision of aid for disaster relief issues. This is the first time when we are actually calling army to help us in what essentially could be called civil work in the financial capital city of the country. The army conducted a feasibility study to assess whether they could complete the work and contribute to the process earlier this month,” Sitharaman said.
Sitharaman added saying she is grateful to the army for coming forward and accepting their role in nation building.
indianexpress
