Odisha CM to inaugurate Gurupriya Bridge next month

Malkangiri: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will inaugurate the much-awaited Gurupriya Bridge that will serve as a lifeline for thousands of people in the inaccessible areas of Malkangiri district next month.

The project is almost complete barring a few minor works, informed Works Minister, Prafulla Mallick after the performance review meeting of his department chaired by Naveen Patnaik today.

The 910-meter-long Gurupriya Bridge is expected to resolve all the problems of communication for around 30,000 people of nearly 150 villages in the cut-off regions in and around the Kalimela and Chitrakonda reservoirs.

It is pertinent to mention here that Maoists have been opposing the construction of the project.

Keeping in view the Maoist threat, security has been tightened along with round-the-clock surveillance through CCTV cameras to protect the bridge, official sources said.

The foundation stone for the bridge was laid in 1982 by the then Chief Minister, JB Patnaik and again by Naveen Patnaik in 2000.