Member of Parliament Urges Swift Motion on Chatham-Bambooflat Bridge Development

Tarun Karthick

Port Blair, 31 July 2023

In a bid to deal with the longstanding subject of transportation inconvenience between Port Blair and Bambooflat areas, Mr. Kuldeep Rai Sharma, the Member of Parliament representing Andaman and Nicobar Islands, has fervently known as upon the Government to expedite the development of the Chatham-Bambooflat Bridge. The proposed bridge, with an estimated value of Rs. 2,000 Crore, is predicted to revolutionise vehicular site visitors motion and considerably scale back journey time for commuters.

Raising the urgent matter throughout a session of Parliament on July 28, 2023, Mr. Sharma emphasised the pivotal function the Chatham-Bambooflat Bridge would play in connecting Chatham Island to Bambooflat. The bridge, spanning a size of 1.6 kilometres, has been assigned to the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. for implementation.

Currently, residents of the South Andaman area face a cumbersome journey of roughly 48 kilometres to journey between the 2 factors by way of land. However, with the proposed bridge, the gap will likely be drastically decreased, bolstering financial improvement within the course of.

Mr. Sharma make clear the challenges which have slowed down progress on the Chatham-Bambooflat Bridge challenge. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic led to a short lived halt within the floor works, considerably impacting the preparation of the Detailed Project Report (DPR). Consequently, the delay has grow to be a serious concern for the island’s inhabitants, who eagerly await the challenge’s completion.

He additional disclosed that the Draft DPR was submitted to the headquarters of the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd. on February 25, 2023. However, it’s at present below examination, awaiting sanction from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

Beyond its speedy advantages, the Chatham-Bambooflat Bridge additionally holds the promise of ushering financial prosperity to underdeveloped areas within the South Andaman area, following the Twin City Concept. Moreover, it would considerably scale back journey time to North and Middle Andaman by offering a shorter various street to Ferrargunj from Port Blair.