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Ludhiana: Domoria bridge work delayed; biz affected, say traders
Deputy chief engineer (railway construction) Abhinav Garg said the bridge expansion work was complete but the work on sewage under the bridge, which had to be dug for the project, was now being reconstructed
The local business establishments near the Domoria bridge here have been struggling to stay afloat as the road connecting the old city to Civil Lines has now been closed for three months as the undercrossing is shut due to the bridge expansion and track-laying work. The railway bridge expansion is a part of the line doubling project between Ludhiana and Mullanpur. It was supposed to be completed by March 2, but now the railways has extended the deadline by 15 days.
Dr Yogesh Malhotra, who runs a homeopathy clinic some 100 metres towards the old city from the bridge, said, “My patients have fallen by 60 per cent in these last three months. While the old patients have remained with us, the new ones are gone.”
“I teach at the Lord Mahavir Homeopathic Medical College which is on the other side and most of my family and friends also live across the bridge. The alternate route is from the railway station road, which is mostly jammed. To save time, I park my car on the other side of the bridge and have to cross the tracks. I have injured my feet a few times while crossing the tracks at night whenever I have to go to the other side,” he said.
Baljeet Singh, who runs a fitness equipment store near the bridge, said that most of the customers would only stop by when they saw the store open. “But now that the road is closed, how people would know that there is a fitness equipment store here?” he asked.
Most hit are the cobblers and mechanics who run shops alongside the road. “Now, there are no customers,” said Deepak Kumar, a cobbler. Bittu Singh, a mechanic, who repairs shockers and other spare parts, said his business is completely dependent on two-wheelers passing by his shop. Ever since the bridge has been shut, he has lost 80% of his customers, he said.
There are two schools on both sides of the bridge, Saraswati Vidya Mandir towards Civil Lines and Dayanand Public School towards old city. Since the alternate route is very long, kids living nearby prefer crossing the tracks.
Baljeet Singh, who runs a fitness equipment store, said, “It is not safe to send kids. We must ensure when they go to school and return while accompanied by someone. Kids don’t understand how dangerous a mistake can turn out to be.
Deputy chief engineer (railway construction) Abhinav Garg said the bridge expansion work was complete but the work on sewage under the bridge, which had to be dug for the project, was now being reconstructed. The sewage, which takes the wastewater from the old city to the Buddah Nullah, passes through this place. He said that the issues arising out of bypassing the sewage by pumping wastewater from one side to another is causing the delay. He said the work would be completed by March 15.
