ÑDz©ÌåÓý¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³

The Andhra Pradesh Government will commission a fresh technical investigation into the 125-year-old Havelock Bridge over the Godavari before turning the disused rail crossing into the show-piece of the Rs 944 million Akhanda Godavari tourism scheme approved by the Union Ministry of Tourism.

Tourism Minister Kandula Durgesh said a previous Indian Institute of Technology–Madras survey had judged the 2.74-kilometre structure sound, but a second assessment would give planners and investors greater confidence. The blueprint envisages craft bazaars and other attractions on the historic lattice-girder span, with each of its 25 arches themed around Andhra Pradesh’s culture, crafts and folk literature. A 120-acre tent city is also proposed on a mid-river island.

Built between 1897 and 1900 and mothballed by South-Central Railway in 1997, the bridge has now been handed to the state on an “as-is-where-is� basis. Of the Rs 410 million beautification cost, Rs 340 million is already earmarked for execution by R&B Infra Projects.

Union Tourism and Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan will perform the Bhumi Puja for the wider Akhanda Godavari initiative on 26 June. Besides the bridge makeover, the package funds a Kadiyam Nurseries experience centre, canal boating and nightly “Godavari Harathi� rituals at Nidadavolu, all aimed at showcasing the river ahead of the Godavari Pushkarams in 2027.