Protest by CPI(M) for Delay in Completion of the 6-lane Kulur Bridge across Phalguni River on NH 66- People are wondering whether the work got stalled over a ‘commission’ issue, says DYFI leader Muneer Katipalla
Mangaluru: Members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) held a demonstration protesting the inordinate delay in the construction of the six-lane bridge across the Phalguni (Gurupura) River in Kulur on Kochi-Panvel National Highway 66.
Addressing the members here, former City Corporation Councillor Dayananda Shetty said “Even after three years of commencement of the work, the progress was at snail’s pace. It should not become another ‘Pumpwell flyover,’ while it had been four years since highway experts reported the Kulur Old Bridge (towards the city) dilapidated, the work started three years ago was not progressing. The monsoon was fast approaching and the coffer bund erected for pillars was likely to affect the free flow of the river that gets swollen. Low-lying areas upstream could get submerged, and chances are that the old bridge may collapse due to this.
Democratic Youth Federation of India state President Muneer Katipalla said, “Neither Mangaluru City North MLA Y. Bharath Shetty nor Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel appears to have any concern about the completion of the project. People were wondering whether the project came to a standstill because of the ‘commission’ issue. The MLA who takes the name of Gurupura Bridge now and then appears ignorant about the dilapidated Old Bridge. The administration was not concerned about the consequences if the Old Bridge collapses”.
DYFI district president B.K. Imtiyaz said, “MLA Dr Shetty appears disinterested in the completion of the new bridge work. It is over one hundred days that the NITK-Surathkal Gate was closed, yet the skeletal remains of the toll plaza continue to exist”.
