Kolkata flyover tragedy: All TMC has done is paint our projects white and blue, says CPM

The packed Girish Park area of North Kolkata's Jorasanko, that witnessed the deadly collapse of an under-construction bridge leaving 24 dead and injuring hundred others, is a Trinamool Congress stronghold. Haphazardly lined with small sweet shops, smaller grocery stores and multiple tea stalls, amid residential and commercial buildings standing neck to neck, the 800-metre long, dusty approach road to the Vivekananda flyover is brimming with election posters --18 of them splashing pictures of chief minister Mamata Banerjee and local TMC legislator Smita Bakshi representing TMC this year too, and three posters seeking votes for BJP candidate Rahul Sinha.

That's not all. Around three months ago, the chief minister had promised locals inauguration of the long-delayed flyover by the end of March, which ironically was Thursday. As if to keep her promise, residents admitted that work on the flyover was on day and night for the last two months.

Yet, when the structure came down unalarmed on Thursday noon, the immediate stand of TMC was, "Construction of the flyover began in 2008, during CPM regime, not ours," and "the tender was passed in 2009 by the former Left Front government and was given to Hyderabad's IVRCL construction."

On her part, Banerjee did order an inquiry into the incident, calling upon top civil engineering experts, offered hefty compensation of Rs5 lakh and Rs 2lakh each to the next of the kin of deceased and the injured and announced that those responsible wouldn't be spared. But what made her alienate the ambitious project that she was once holding onto so dearly? 

Her political opponents said it is nothing but the timing of the incident. The state begins its first phase of polling three days later on April 4. State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said the TMC is steeped in corruption and that's the root cause of the 'impending' disaster. "How did the ruling party did not know that the infrastructure company (IVRCL) building the flyover was blacklisted earlier by the Railways as well as the Hyderabad corporation?" Chowdhury asked.  
He also alleged that the original contract was also sub-contracted to relatives of the local TMC leader. 

"It had been repeatedly pointed out that the design of the flyover was faulty. Why couldn't the government ask the contractor for the design plan and get it revised, which has such a dubious reputation?" Chowdhury asked.
Crying graft, local leader Rahul Sinha, who is fighting for the Jorasanko constituency on a BJP ticket, said that the infra company was given an extension at least nine times to complete the delayed project.

"What started as a Rs164 crore project, has already touched the Rs200 crore mark. What was the tearing hurry in starting the construction just two months ahead of the election? The quality was also compromised because of the haste," Sinha told dna.

The crowded Jorasanko constituency is home to a thick population of trading communities, including Rajasthanis, Biharis and Gujaratis and Biharis, a demography that will come as an advantage to the BJP on the lines of is 'ease of doing business' promise. 

The national party is trying to get an entry into the state this time.

Leaders of CPI(M), which ruled the state for 34-long years before being ousted by the TMC in 2011, said that Banerjee has only been been taking credits over the completion of projects started by the left government. 

CPI(M) leader Surjya Kanta Mishra said that what the ruling party has done in the last five years was to paint infrastructural projects started by the left government in white and blue.

"They always took credit for work initiated by us, but changed their stance in this case, even though they were in charge of it for the last five years," he said. 

Aside allegations, the biggest embarrassment for TMC, however, was when TMC MP of North Kolkata, Sudip Bandopadhyay, too said he had asked for the sketch of the flyover to be remodelled, but that never happened.  
 Local TMC leader Smita Bakshi refuted allegations saying that the bridge had to start sometime and that the party was in no hurry to finish it before the polls.  "It was hugely delayed because of opposition from locals who said that it was interfering with their balconies. It was also under litigation for sometime, so work couldn't progress earlier. But it has to start sometime," she said, adding that despite repeated reminders, the infra company did not submit her the bridge design plan.

However, she couldn't make it clear why did the infra company owners refused to pay heed to the local legislator's demand of producing the plan.

West Bengal government officials said work has on a standstill for almost six years because of a lack of permission from the Calcutta Port Trust on build piers on the ramp on a 150 metre stretch of the road. The project was a joint venture of the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority with construction company IVRCL. 

Calling the incident a game changer, Kolkata locals say the incident and its timing could be a setback for the ruling TMC, which was expected to make a clean sweep this election.