Lalapet flyover gets facelift

Lalapet:  Breathing a sigh of relief to many motorists and local people, the impending proposal for the facelift of Lalapet flyover has finally been sanctioned by the State government. 

The whopping Rs 5.08 crore project has been kickstarted by Excise and Prohibition Minister T Padma Rao Goud along with Tarnaka Corporator A Saraswathi Hari and Secunderabad GHMC Deputy Commissioner K Ravi Kumar here on Wednesday. 

Thrown open to the public in the late 1990s by the then Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HUDA) alongside the Khairthabad, Begumpet and Basheerbagh flyovers, the structure of Lalapet bridge had taken a lot of damage in the last twenty years due to the lack of regular maintenance by the officials. 

In fact, with the presence of a Vijaya Dairy unit, several South Central Railway units and soft drink manufacturing units in the neighbourhood, heavy vehicular traffic has also taken a toll on the bearings of the bridge threatening lives of not just the construction but also of motorists using the route frequently. 

The GHMC Deputy Commissioner K Ravi Kumar shared that since the flyover is turning unsafe by each passing day, a Mumbai based company has been handed over the responsibility to restore the bridge thereby increasing its lifespan. 

He added that it would take a minimum of seven to eight months for the project to be accomplished and that no inconvenience would be caused to people as the works would go on one side at a time while the traffic would be provided ample space to move about. 

As a part of the face-lifting project, roads of the flyover would be levelled up and adjusted to one another before the bearings are replaced, thereby increasing the durability of the bridge and bringing down the amount of stress to daily commuters. Connecting Tarnaka and its neighbourhood to the industrial centres of ECIL and Moula Ali, the bridge also holds an economical significance. Hence, the State government is ensuring that the works would begin at the earliest. 

Speaking on the occasion, Minister Padma Rao said, " The lives of commoners is more important to me that the flaws of the previous governments. The need of the hour is to make sure that the flyover is doubly strengthened to handle the crowd of the region. Let’s hope that the restoration and reparation works are worth every effort put in by the team."