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The five-member high-level committee appointed by the Ministry of Railways to study the stability of the newly constructed Pamban rail bridge has cleared its design, certifying that the 2.08-km-long bridge is structurally safe. The committee comprising Principal Executive Director (PED), Bridges; PED, Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO); Chief Bridge Engineer (Southern Railway); Director of Rail Vikas Nigam Limited; and an external expert from IIT-Roorkee had inspected the bridge early January.
“Having deliberated on the adequacy of design of the bridge, the committee concludes that the bridge has been designed as per the relevant provisions of Indian Railway Standards Steel Bridge Code, duly accounting for the fatigue for annual traffic of 50 gross million tonnes and design life of 100 years,” the panel said in its report dated January 11, 2025, a copy of which has been accessed by The Hindu . “Thus, the bridge is structurally safe to serve the intended purposes,” the report concluded. ‘Satisfied with design of lift span’ According to the report, the committee was fully satisfied that the design of the 72.
5-metre-long vertical lift span has been done by competent designers and reviewed properly by IIT-Madras and IIT-Bombay, based on Indian and Euro codes duly assessed for fatigue. The weld joints have been done by competent welders. The methodology for approval of sop drawings and weld by designer are also as per QAP and best industrial practices, the report said.
“Independent weld checking has been done by Welding Research Institute, Tiruchi, controlled by BHEL,” the members said in their report. The possible speed on the lift span is restricted to 80 kmph due to curvature on the Rameswaram end, it added. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw formed the committee after the Commissioner of Railway Safety, A.
M. Chowdhary, made adverse comments after his statutory inspection of the new Pamban rail bridge, which has a foreign design — a non-RDSO (Research Design Standards Organisation) design. Though the CRS had cleared the bridge for operation of train services, he pointed out “glaring lapses” in the planning and execution of the ₹531-crore bridge project executed by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited.
The high-level technical panel also suggested constant interaction between consultants, RDSO, and academic institutions to facilitate faster clearance of designs of such iconic structures, including modern technologies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate the new Pamban rail bridge on April 6. Published - April 04, 2025 01:39 pm IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit railway / Tamil Nadu.
