The Union government has approved a cable-stayed cum suspension bridge across the Krishna river. This bridge has been a long-pending demand of the people of both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The bridge, which will connect Telangana’s Somasila to Andhra Pradesh’s Siddeswaram, will significantly reduce the travel time between Telangana and the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh.
Currently, the distance by road between Kollapur in Nagarkurnool district of Telangana and Atmakur in Nandyal district of Andhra Pradesh is about 175 km. Once the bridge is completed, those travelling from Hyderabad to Kadapa, Chittoor and Tirupati in the neighbouring state will not have to take a detour through Kurnool. The bridge is expected to cut the distance between Hyderabad and Tirupati by 80 km. Currently, the distance between the two cities is 580 km.
Earlier this year, the Union government approved a new national highway that links the two Telugu states. The highway to be built at the cost of Rs.1,700 crore will link Kalwakurthy, Nagarkurnool and Kollapur in Telangana to Atmakur and Nandyal in Andhra Pradesh.
The newly sanctioned cable bridge across the Krishna will be part of this national highway. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari took to Twitter to share details of the proposed bridge, which will come up at a cost of Rs 1082.56 crore, with the construction deadline set for 30 months.
He wrote that this bridge would be the first of its kind in India and the second in the world. It would also have several features like the longest glass pedestrian walkway across a river, gopuram-like pylons, signature lighting and a large navigational span. The bridge will span the Srisailam reservoir surrounded by Nallamala forests, which the government is hoping will attract tourists.
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People on both sides of the Krishna river have long been demanding construction of the bridge. It picked up momentum after a boat capsized in the river, killing 61 people on January 19, 2007. The tragedy occurred near Nehru Nagar in Kurnool district when the people were on their way to take part in Singotam Jatara in Kollapur.
Chief Minister of erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh YS Rajasekhara Reddy, had promised to build the bridge and sanctioned Rs 50 crore. However, the project did not take off due to the 2009 elections, Chief Minister Rajasekhara Reddy's death in a helicopter crash and subsequent political developments, including the Telangana agitation.
Following fresh demands from people on both sides of the river, Kiran Kumar Reddy, the last Chief Minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh, had sanctioned Rs 250 crore for the bridge. However, the project remained a non-starter.
After the division of Andhra Pradesh and the formation of Telangana in 2014, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government approved the bridge plan and sanctioned Rs 190 crore. It urged the then Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government in Andhra Pradesh to release their portion of funds. The project, however, remained on paper.
In the 2019 elections, the bridge had become a poll issue. The BJP candidate in Nagarkurnool Lok Sabha constituency in Mahabubnagar district of Telangana had promised to get the bridge constructed. Kollapur MLA B Harshavardhan Reddy had claimed that the promise to build the bridge made him switch loyalties to TRS in 2019, a few months after he won the election on a Congress ticket.