Agencies
Amid the rising tensions between India and China at the Line of Actual Control, the Centre has cancelled the tender of a bridge project over Ganga river in Bihar over the involvement of two Chinese companies in the mega project.
A senior official of Bihar government said that two of the four contractors selected for the project were Chinese and this is the reason why the Centre has decided to cancel the tender. The official added that a new tender will be floated soon.
The capital cost of the entire project was around Rs 2,900 crore. The project included the construction of a 5.6-km-long bridge, other minor bridges, underpasses and a rail overbridge.
The Centre's decision to scrap the project came few days after the martyrdom of 20 Indian soldiers, including a commanding officer, in a clash with Chinese troops in Ladakh's Galwan Valley on June 15.
The project was cleared on December 16, 2019 by the Union government's cabinet committee on economic affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The new bridge was to be built parallel to the iconic Mahatma Gandhi Setu across the Ganga river. It is expected that the construction of this bridge would help the people of Patna, Saran and Vaishali districts. The mega project also included the consturction of four vehicular underpasses, a rail overbridge, a 1.58-km-long viaduct, a flyover, four minor bridges, five bus shelters and 13 road junctions.
The project was supposed to be completed by January, 2023. |
