Mumbai: Army personnel bridge Ambivli station gap in one hour flat

With cries of Jai Hind and salutes, the Bombay Sappers Engineering Team from the Indian Army lifted and placed the final girders of the assembled Bailey bridge at Ambivli station in about 20 minutes and fixed them on the foundations, completing the initial launch procedure in one hour flat, as the railways stopped all trains on the section for three hours for the work. The day's work was completed in four and a half hours. The 3.759-m wide foot overbridge will open to the public by January 26.

"As a part of the nation-building exercise, the first Bailey Bridge for Ambivli foot bridge was launched at 11.15 am on Thursday. Civil work on the pile foundation had commenced in November 2017. A large number of innovations was also undertaken at the site to meet the peculiar requirements, and it was possible due to thorough planning, hard work put in by the Army Sappers, and an excellent bonhomie shared between the Army and the railways," a statement by the Indian Army read.

The Army is constructing Bailey bridges at all the three locations, which are essentially assembled from steel panels, considered safe and sturdy for the heaviest of passenger movements. The steel panels, which are joined like Lego parts, have now arrived at the Parel-Elphinstone and Currey Road sites, but related technical work might delay the deadline to February 15.

3 hrs Duration for which trains were stopped on the section
20 mins Time it took the Army officials to lift and place the girders

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