Bridge Day!!

Mother’s day, father’s day, birthday, daughter’s day, rose day, valentine’s day, earth day, doctor’s day, engineer’s day……. The list would go on and on … the point in counting some of this special occasion’s day is Bridge day is coming near, 19^th October. To be honest I have not heard about it before some days.

So this first day official Bridge day was celebrated in 1980 in US in West Virginia. It is an annual one day festival in West Virginia. It was the started in the celebration of the New River Gorge Bridge. For many years it was world’s tallest steel single span bridge which is now ranked on the fourth no. On the bridge day, bridge is opened for BASE jump. Automobiles are banned on the bridge this day. In 2013, New River Gorge Bridge is listed on the National Registrar of Historic Places.

The Wikipedia definition of the bridge is; ‘a structure built to span the physical obstacle such as water body, valley or a road’. Bridges are considered as the marvels of structural engineering. Some bridges are definitely breathtaking in aesthetic point of view.

Let’s take a look at some important bridges in our India.

• Bandra-Worli sea link

  

  Image courtesy: alltouristattraction.org

  I cannot imagine any other name of the bridge at the top of the list other than ‘Bandra-Worli sea link’; standing still, strong and proudly at in the capital of Maharashtra, aamchi Mumbai. It is also known as the Rajiv Gandhi sea link. The bridge is cable stayed. It links Bandra and western suburbs of the Mumbai. 
  It was a big time project in terms of everything. It costed 1600 crores ($356.8 millions). It was a project by Maharashtra state & road development completed by Hindustan Construction Company and designed by DAR consultants. It is India’s largest sea bridge.  
   
• Annai Indira Gandhi Bridge/ pamban Bridge 

  

  Image courtesy: commons.wikimedia.org

  It is in the Tamilnadu state of India. It is India’s first sea bridge. It connects Rameshwaram Island to mainland of India. It is India’s second largest sea bridge. It is both road and cantilever railway bridge but mainly used as the rail bridge. It has double leaf bascule midway which can be raised to let ships pass by under it.
• Mahatma Gandhi Setu 

  

  Image courtesy: civilfeeds.com

  It was the longest bridge in India at the time of construction and was inaugurated by Indira Gandhi in 1982. It joins Hajipur and Patna in Bihar. It is also known as the Ganga setu. It is graceful in appearance. It is one of the longest river bridges in the world.  
  
  
  
  
• Howrah bridge/ Rabindra Setu

  

  Image courtesy: wakpaper.com

  Kolkata, the cultural Capital of India, has this famous Howrah Bridge. I remember while watching my favorite movie Yuva I was attracted towards this architectural beauty also. It is on the Hooghly River. This bridge connects Kolkata and Howrah. Its official name has been change to Rabindra setu but it is famously known as the Howrah Bridge. Whenever there is mention of Kolkata, there are writers, poets and art, right from Ravindranath Tagore a Nobel Prize winner in literature to high end fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee. Famous poet Rudyard Kipling has mentioned in his in city of dreadful that ‘this is worth coming across India to see this’.

• Golden bridge
  
  

  

  Image courtesy: rediff.com

  It is a bridge in Gujarat state. It joins the Ankaleshwar and Bharuch. It was built by British Govt. The name Golden Bridge refers to the cost required at that time to build the bridge. But it is a marvelous structure standing well in condition even after going through Gujarat floods and earthquake. It is one of the longest cantilever types of the bridge. 
• Godavari Rail Bridge/ Kovvur-Rajahmundrry Bridge 
  It is Asia’s second longest road cum Rail Bridge. It is actually now a sister bridges the old Godavari Rail Bridge was built in British era of India in 1900 and it was spectacular and now the new Godavari Rail Bridge is built as a substitute for it by Hindustan Construction Company. The new Godavari Bridge is beautiful in aesthetics having the arches over it. 

  

  Image courtesy: indiamike.com
• Panvalnadi Bridge

  

  Image courtesy: civilfeeds.com

  It is the Rail Bridge in Maharashtra. It was the tallest Bridge in India but it lost title because of the grand project being completed in North India. It is in the Kokan region of the Maharashtra. It was the project by Kokan Railway Corporation. It was awarded by the Indian Institute of Bridge Engineers and American Concrete Institute as the most outstanding concrete structure in India.
• Jadukata bridge

  

  Image courtesy: walkthroughindia.com

It is the longest span cantilever type of the bridge in India. It is in the Meghalaya state. It’s built on the Kyunski River. It is listed in the one of the most beautiful bridges in India.

The exciting thing on the occasion of this post about bridge day is I came to know that the world’s highest railway bridge is on its way of completion in Jammu & Kashmir on Chenab River. Kudos!!