Structural stability of Punjagutta flyover under scanner

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has commissioned an assessment of structural stability of the flyover at Punjagutta, after serious damage to the pillars was brought to light through social media platforms on Tuesday.

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has commissioned an assessment of structural stability of the flyover at Punjagutta, after serious damage to the pillars was brought to light through social media platforms on Tuesday.

The flyover was built over 15 years ago, which will be remembered when the scaffolding collapsed and killed a techie, and injured several others in September 2007. The flyover was also the site of a major and a few minor fire accidents a couple of years ago, due to which black soot enveloped a few pillars and the bearings underneath.

The pictures posted on the Twitter account of one ‘Team Road Squad’, showed greater damage, with big chunks of concrete chipped off from the pillar. Several replies to the tweet sought the flyover shut down for repairs to avert major disasters.

As the tweet went viral, GHMC officials including Superintendent Engineer, Executive Engineer and others have taken up a site inspection. Replying to the tweet they attributed the soot-covered portion to the fire mishap in which a fibre sculpture was burnt. It will be rectified by painting, and for structural stability, the opinion of a structural engineer will be taken, an official said in response.

Speaking to The Hindu, another official informed that JNTU has been requested to conduct structural stability tests for the flyover and submit a report suggesting further action. Higher officials in GHMC blamed the street urchins and addicts who sleep beneath the flyover during nights for the fire mishaps, when they light up fires to ward off the cold in winters. However, he sought to allay fears about the damage, saying the spans were not subjected to fire directly, but only lost the visual appeal due to soot emanating from smoke.

No checks for structural strength nor any repairs have been carried to the bridge post the mishap. The flyover is a major link between Banjara Hills and Begumpet, and serves thousands of commuters every day. It is a short distance away from Pragathi Bhavan, the Chief Minister’s camp office, and sometimes is the route of his convoy.