Title - Lack of overbridge triggers traffic jam

A railway level-crossing at Pokhariput has become a nightmare for commuters, as they have to spend 20 to 30 minutes to cross the stretch during peak hours.At times, the problem becomes so acute that vehicles are seen stranded from DAV School Square up to Lingaraj passenger halt near Bhimatangi, on the other side of the railway track.The problem becomes acute between 9.30am and 11am and 4pm and 5.30pm. Students coming from Old Town and nearby areas to various schools suffer the most as they remain stranded because of the traffic congestion.“Schoolchildren often reach school late because of the rush at the level-crossing. The state government and the East Coast Railway authorities must sit together to speed up the work for the railway overbridge here,” said Rumjhum Acharya, a homemaker at Pokhariput.IT professional Soubhagyalaxmi Parida, who takes the city bus to her office at Infocity near Patia everyday, said: “Office-goers often get delayed because of the rush at the level crossing. There is an alternate way — the Kargil Road — along the boundary of the airport. But, city buses do not ply on that route.”Anshuman Patnaik, an IT professional and a resident of Pokhariput, said: “We have been hearing about construction of a railway overbridge here for the last five years. But, the bridge is yet to come up.”

The railway overbridge is expected to cost Rs 42 crore, of which the state government has agreed to bear Rs 22 crore while the Indian Railways will pay the rest.

Ranjit Kumar Sahu, executive engineer of division II of the public works department (PWD), said: “There are problems related to land acquisition for construction of the overbridge. We cannot start working on the bridge unless the land issues are solved.”

However, Bhubaneswar MLA (Ekamra) Ashok Kumar Panda said: “As the tendering process is almost over for the project, the work will start soon after the foundation stone laying ceremony is done by the chief minister. The issue of the overbridge was discussed at several meetings of the city management group and the land issues have been sorted out.”

According to the master plan, the overbridge will start from DAV School, Pokhariput Square, and end near Sundarpada village.