Panaji: Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari will on Thursday evening inaugurate the first phase of a new bridge constructed on the Zuari river in Goa, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said.
The cable-stayed structure, termed by the government to be the country’s widest bridge once fully completed, is located on the Zuari river at Cortalim village on Margao-Panaji National Highway, about 15 km from the state capital.
The bridge is considered as an important link between North and South Goa.
CM Sawant told reporters on Wednesday that Union minister Gadkari will inaugurate the first phase of the bridge during a function scheduled at the site on Thursday evening.
He said the bridge would be opened for traffic from Thursday midnight.
The bridge will reduce the travel time between North Goa and South Goa districts, he said.
An old bridge on the river, which was constructed in 1980s, has not been able to withstand the increasing traffic load on the national highway.
The new bridge is part of a Rs 2,530 crore project covering a distance of 13.2 kilometres between Bambolim (North Goa) and Verna (South Goa) villages.
Dilip Buildcon Limited, which is constructing the new Zuari bridge, has said the entire eight-lane project will be completed by April 2023.
India is aiming to double the size of its automobile industry to Rs 15 lakh crore by the end of 2024, making it one of the world’s top countries in this sector, Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Wednesday.
Gadkari also said that his ministry will carry out project works worth Rs 5 lakh crore next year, of which Rs 2 lakh crore will come from the government and the rest will be raised from the capital market.
“Currently our automobile industry is Rs 7.5 lakh crore and we want to take it to Rs 15 lakh crore by the end of 2024, making it one of the largest automakers in the world, creating huge job opportunities,” Gadkari said at a virtual session of Merchants’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
He said the majority of automobiles in the country will run on alternative fuels by 2030.
“We are also working on developing alternative, clean and green fuels like bio-ethanol, bio-CNG, bio-LNG and green hydrogen,” he said, adding that green hydrogen is the fuel of the future.Gadkari spoke about the success of the listing of Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) which drew huge interest from investors.
