₹35 crore spent on repairing 36 bridges in five years in Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad’s Subhash Bridge has been closed to all traffic since December 4 and there is little possibility of its reopening even after December 25.

The closure has once again brought the Amdavad Municipal Corporation’s (AMC) bridge inspection and repair mechanism under scrutiny, especially as the civic body claims to have spent nearly ₹35 crore over the past five years on repairing and painting on 36 bridges across the city.

What has raised eyebrows is that just a few months ago, AMC spent ₹25 lakh on repairing the footpath and carrying out asphalt patchwork on Subhash Bridge.

Inspection claims vs ground reality

AMC has claimed that inspection of 67 bridges in the city was carried out before and after the monsoon. The inspection report of Subhash Bridge had certified it to be in “good condition”. 

The inspection report was submitted in July, but five months later, the civic body was forced to shut down the bridge due to serious structural concerns.

Bridge-wise expenditure details

Below is the list of bridges where repair works were undertaken, along with the expenses incurred:

• Subhash Bridge – Thick asphalt patchwork (₹0.25 crore)
• Sardar Bridge (Old) – Resurfacing work (₹1.5 crore)
• Sardar Bridge (New) – Resurfacing work (₹1 crore)
• Ellis Bridge (New) – Resurfacing work (₹1.5 crore)
• Gandhi Bridge (Old) – Resurfacing work (₹2 crore)
• Gandhi Bridge (New) – Bearing replacement (₹0.75 crore)
• Nehru Bridge – Thick asphalt patchwork (₹3 crore)
• Dadhichi Bridge – Wearing coat repairing (₹0.25 crore)
• Kalupur Bridge – Strengthening wall (₹2 crore)
• Sarangpur Bridge – Strengthening wall (₹2 crore)
• Asarwa Bridge – Thick asphalt patchwork (₹0.4 crore)
• Jagjivan Bridge – Strengthening wall (₹2 crore)
• Cadila Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.2 crore)
• Zaghdia Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.8 crore)
• Ambedkar Bridge – Thick asphalt patchwork (₹2.5 crore)
• Chimanbhai Bridge – Thick asphalt patchwork (₹2 crore)
• Chandlodiya Bridge – Grouting work (₹2 crore)
• Vejalpur Railway Bridge – Thick asphalt patchwork (₹3.5 crore)
• Shahibaug Railway Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.6 crore)
• Gujarat College Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.7 crore)
• Ranip Railway Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.65 crore)
• Akbarnagar Bridge – Catch drain repairing (₹0.35 crore)
• Income Tax Bridge – Catch drain repairing (₹0.1 crore)
• Usmanpura Bridge – Catch drain repairing (₹0.5 crore)
• Shivranjani Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.75 crore)
• CTM Bridge – Resurfacing work (₹0.65 crore)