NFR to begin major repair of Saraighat bridge

Guwahati, Dec 27 (IANS) The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) plans to carry out a massive repair of the road deck portion of the historical Saraighat bridge in the next few days, official sources said on Thursday.NFR chief public relation officer Pranav Jyoti Sharma said that it will be a round-the-clock work.There had been apprehensions among people on the safety of Saraighat Bridge following some cracks on the concrete surface of the bridge."As many as 80 identified deck slabs of Saraighat bridge are going to be replaced. After completing the slab, asphalt layer will be provided over entire bridge after replacing all expansion joints," he said.The Saraighat rail-cum-road bridge was commissioned in 1963 and it handles a huge volume of road and rail traffic everyday.Although the steel girders of the bridge have been regularly maintained as per laid-down procedure, the road portion has not been adequately attended due to constant presence of traffic.
--IANS ah/prs