Construction of the 360-meter-long river bridge atop Purna river falling between Bilimora and Surat stations in Gujarat was fraught with challenges for the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), the implementing agency for the bullet train project to connect Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
Of the total 24 river bridges on the high speed rail corridor, 20 are being constructed in Gujarat and four in Maharashtra. The Purna river bridge is the second of these bridges to be completed. “The foundation work was challenging as water levels in the river kept rising between five to six meters every fortnight due to high tides,” senior officials in NHSRCL said.
Continuous monitoring of high and low tides from the Arabian Sea was carried out during the construction, they further said.
