The Bombay Engineer Group, popularly called Bombay Sappers, a regiment of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army will construct the three new FOBs
The Indian Army will construct a new Foot-Over-Bridge (FOB) at Elphinstone Road, where 23 persons died in a stampede on September 29, as well as a new FOB each at Currey Road and Ambivili stations, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced on Tuesday morning. Fadnavis visited Elphinstone Road station with Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal. The three FOBs will be completed by January 31, the ministers assured.
The Bombay Engineer Group, popularly called Bombay Sappers, a regiment of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army will construct the three new FOBs. "We wanted to come out with a solution as soon as possible," said Fadnavis, "The Army has expertise in completing work in short time. They will be constructing three bridges at Elphinstone Road, Currey Road and Ambivili stations by January 31," said Fadnavis.
The Railways minister said officers from the Railways and Defence ministries surveyed the sites which had heavy footfall. "We surveyed all the stations minutely and have taken few decisions that revolve around providing convenience to passengers and ensuring their safety," Goyal said.
The Defence minister said a call was taken to co-operate seeing the urgency of the matter as the Army has its role at the borders. "The Army has come and seen, inspected and assessed where the bridge is going to be built. They will be there at every stage of the work," she said, adding, "This is probably for the first time the Army was asked to come in to build what could otherwise be called civil work, but the Elphinstone tragedy was so big. We all know that during natural disasters or calamities, our Army chips in to provide relief.
But this is the first time when our forces are extending their support to avoid the recurrence of the unfortunate accident in the city, which gives jobs to millions."
The move to rope in the Indian Army, however, came under attack from Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh. Terming it unprecedented and deplorable, he slammed the Centre's decision, highlighting that it reflected the failure of the government and the Indian Railways.
The move also drew flak on social media, with people questioning why Defence resources were being used for civilian works. They slammed the BMC and Railways, claiming it was shameful that the Army had to construct the FOB due to the incompetence of these agencies.
"Calling the Army to make a bridge in Mumbai underlines failure of corrupt Shiv Sena-BJP-ruled BMC," Mumbai Congress President Sanjay Nirupam also tweeted. "Hope Army will not be asked to fill potholes here."
Meanwhile, military sources said that one of the biggest problems in construction of the new FOB is the poor soil quality on site. The width of the new FOB will be 3.5 meters. Sources said the ground will have to be dug to at least 6 meters deep for the piers to get a good hold.
"We could have completed the work much earlier than the deadline, but the soil is of poor quality and so we need to be careful, especially when there are so many challenges in constructing the FOBs at such short notice," said a Defence ministry source.
The Defence Ministry has listed out other challenges, such as heavy traffic of train movement, high voltage lines and constraints in movement of equipment. Senior military officials said that space constraint is also an issue; they have asked the Railways to regulate traffic and for partial closure whenever required.
The Army will also extend the Parel FOB to provide an exit near the flower market in the area. This will go over seven rail lines and a huge portion of rail land. The Central Railway, meanwhile, has already started work on the Parel Terminus which, once ready, will be integrated with the new extended FOB. The Western Railway is also constructing another FOB connecting both Elphinstone Road and Parel stations at a cost of Rs. 11.5 crore, that will have a width of 12 meters.
Army's Timeline
Preliminary Action: Nov 5
Move of Stores (material at site): Nov 25
Preparation of Foundation: Dec 31
Construction of Bridge: Jan 15
Misc civil works: January 31
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