Larsen & Toubro (L&T) secured a significant engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract last Thursday for the construction of a new 12.2 km bridge connecting Palasbari to Sualkuchi in Assam. The contract, valued at Rs. 2688.54 crore, involves the development of a 4-lane extradosed pre-stressed concrete (PSC) bridge spanning the Brahmaputra river, positioned just west of Guwahati. This bridge will link Kaita Sidhi on NH-17 (near Mirza) on the south bank with Bongsor Sualkuchi Road on the north bank.
The foundation stone for this ambitious project was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14, 2023, with a total estimated cost of Rs. 3197.20 crores. The New Development Bank (NDB) will finance 80% of the project, having approved a USD 300 million loan in July 2019.
Assam’s Public Works Road Department (PWRD) initiated the pre-qualification process in March 2023, with a project estimate of Rs. 2600 crore. In June 2023, two applications were received from Larsen Toubro and SP Singla Constructions. SP Singla was disqualified during the evaluation, making Larsen & Toubro the lowest bidder when their financial bid was unveiled as part of the Request for Proposal (RfP) stage.
The scope of the project encompasses the construction of an extra-dosed PSC bridge over the Brahmaputra, including viaducts, approaches, and river training works, on an EPC basis. Assam’s Chief Minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, shared design renderings on Twitter in April 2023, providing a glimpse into the envisioned structure.
Anticipating the progression of the project, groundwork for the river training component is expected to commence in Q2 2024, with the actual construction of the bridge’s substructure commencing towards the end of Q3 2024. The Prime Minister’s YouTube video on the bridge project offers a rough alignment of the structure at the 1:42 mark.