Digha-Patna road in fast lane: Project likely to complete by 2021

The road will run through Punaichak, Shivpuri, Srikrishnapuri, Indrapuri, New Patliputra Colony and Patliputra industrial area, between Digha and R-Block.

The long-awaited elevated road between Digha Ghat and R-Block intersection is likely to be ready by March 2021, according to officials from the road construction department (RCD).  

RCD principal secretary Amrit Lal Meena said a contractor would be chosen for the 6.3-km road by March after floating tenders in February. “Tender will be finalised by the Bihar State Road Development Corporation (BSRDC) in February, and the project could finish within two years,” Meena said.

The road will run through Punaichak, Shivpuri, Srikrishnapuri, Indrapuri, New Patliputra Colony and Patliputra industrial area, between Digha and R-Block. It aims to decongest Ashok Rajpath and Boring Road and will serve as an approach road to the newly opened Dighat-Sonepur railway bridge over Ganga and to the under-construction Ganga pathway— a bypass between Danapur and Patna City.

On June 14, the railways gave an in-principle approval to hand over a 71.25-acre plot, through which a defunct railway line ran, at a cost of ₹222 crore. The state cabinet also approval the acquisition on June 26. The land was used for running train between Digha Ghat and Patna junction since 1862.

The road will have 6 lanes between Bailey Road and Rajiv Chowk (3.5km) , and four lanes from R-block to Bailely Road and from Rajiv Chowk to Digha (2.8km).

“A sum of ₹380 crore will be spent on its construction, which will have an underpass (at Shivpuri) and a flyover (at Rajiv Nagar), a major flyover at Bailey Road (100 metres) and two-lane service road,” said an RCD executive engineer.

The major flyover over Bailey Road will be cable-stayed, while the one at Rajiv Nagar will be made of reinforced concrete cement (RCC) sub-structure. The underpass will also be built with RCC.

RCD principal secretary Meena said the main carriageway of the project had been proposed to be of 6-lane with a median width of 5 metres. “It will have a bituminous top in keeping with huge traffic flow and easy maintenance. A minimum of four-metre wide corridor has been left exclusively for the construction of Metro. Besides, 3x3 metre RCC box type culverts have been proposed at every 500 metres along the corridor for stormwater,” he said.

“It was a long cherished dream of the chief minster (Nitish Kumar) that would take shape of reality soon. The state government had been demanding the railway land since 2009,” said Meena.