An overbridge too far: Underconstruction Para ROB hits an unusual hurdle

Time of India

2 days ago

Lucknow: Flyovers and overbridges are meant to shorten distances for commuters. But for residents of Lucknow's Para, there's an overbridge too far to cross. Or, rather, it has become a flyover that goes nowhere.
An underconstruction railway overbridge on Krishnanagar-Kesarikheda crossing in Para on Lucknow-Kanpur rail section has met an unexpected hurdle — a two-story building that has blocked the passage and stalled the further construction of the overbridge. The images of underconstruction ROB getting blocked at the building have gone viral on social media and triggered a meme storm.
The reel has already garnered over 17,000 likes, 47,000 shares, and 915 comments.
The reel shows iron bars from the flyover seemingly connecting directly to the building. Some netizens have dubbed it as the "eighth wonder".
The construction has been halted for the past three months. Reason: Eight houses and shops stand directly in the construction path, and their owners haven't received the adequate compensation for land acquisition. While construction continues in unaffected areas, this critical bottleneck remains untouched.
Areas bearing the brunt of this delay include Maharajapuram, Balkrishna Nagar, Panditkheda, Kesarikheda, Gangakheda, Laxmi Vihar, Bhawanipuram, and Ganeshnagar.
The ROB was designed to ease commute between Indralok Colony (near Krishnanagar's Traffic Park) and Kesarikheda and help around 5 lakh residents in surrounding areas like Maharajapuram, Panditkheda, and Gangakheda, who grapple with severe traffic jams, especially during peak hours.
The Krishnanagar-Kesarikheda crossing shuts for more than 60 times daily to give passage to trains. Commuters face frustrating 15-20 minute waits with each closure. Residents had for long been demanding an overbridge and their wish was fulfilled by defence minister and Lucknow MP Rajnath Singh, who got the approval for the project from the state govt and railways.
The foundation stone for the 2-lane and nearly a kilometre-long ROB, being built at cost of Rs 74 crore project, was laid by Rajnath on July 17, 2023.
Work began in Feb 2024 and 75% of the project is already complete.
Rajnath's PRO Raghuvendra Shukla said there was an issue in land acquisition as the owner of the land illegally occupied some railway land, and the matter was in court. Now, the issue has been nearly resolved after the intervention of the district administration and work will resume post-demolition of the said building, he added.
A senior official from UP Bridge Corporation confirmed that the issue is resolved and work will resume soon.