BMC to spend Rs 200 crore on bridge repair works across Mumbai

P. Velrasu, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) told The Indian Express that work on the project will commence soon after monsoon season concludes. “We have done an audit of the bridges. Repair works will be undertaken wherever necessary and work on the same will be taken up as soon as monsoon ends.”

Last December, the BMC said that structural audits of bridges will be carried out twice a year.

Civic officials said at present, a Rs 85 crore tender has been floated for the bridges in Western Suburbs, while Rs 38 crore will be spent for repairing the bridges in eastern suburbs. Overall, the civic body will spend Rs 200 crore including skywalks, and remaining bridges in island city.

Civic officials said that some of the work will include filling works, strengthening the girders and replacing parts that have been worn out. Removal of rust from some of the steel bridges will also be included within the ambit of the repair project.

For the record, after the Gokhale bridge collapsed in 2018 and the Himalaya bridge collapsed in 2019, the civic body had ordered an audit of almost all bridges in Mumbai, following which structural as well as reconstruction works were taken up on several bridges.

There are 448 bridges in Mumbai, out of which the BMC is responsible for the maintenance of 344 bridges. These bridges include skywalks, road and railway over bridges.