India’s first cantilever bridge connects
Rameswaram with mainland
A long-time resident of Rameswaram and former
President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam inaugurated the centenary celebrations of the
Pamban railway bridge — India’s first cantilever bridge, connecting the
pilgrim-island of Rameswaram with the mainland. He turned nostalgic as a
two-coach special train took him from Mandapam across the bridge. “Pamban
bridge is part of my life,” Mr. Kalam said. As a young boy, he had travelled
hundreds of times on the bridge to take newspapers to the island for
distribution.
Mr. Kalam unveiled a plaque and released a
book Marvels of South Indian Railway, marking the inauguration of the nearly
month-long celebrations.
Southern Railway General Manager Rakesh Misra
said the bridge was an engineering marvel that had withstood corrosion and a
violent sea for over a century. The 65.23-metre-long rolling central lift span
(the bridge is 2.06 km long), named after Scherzer, German engineer who
designed and built the span, has been given a fresh coat of paint and decorated
with lights. It opens up like a pair of scissors to allow vessels to pass
through under the bridge.
Mr. Kalam had played a vital role in
preserving the bridge. After the Railways announced its uni-gauge policy in
2006, and almost gave up gauge conversion at the bridge, he brought in
IIT-Madras expertise to thrash out an engineering solution.
The bridge was put to test for the first time
in December 1964, when a severe cyclonic storm hit this part of the area. All
girders, both RCC and steel, were washed away. Two of the 141 piers were also
damaged. But, Scherzer’s span withstood nature’s fury.
No comments:
Post a Comment