Kolkata: In spite of a ban, gutka and pan masala have become a major threat to the iconic Howrah Bridge in West Bengal.
According to Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT), which is in charge of maintaining the bridge, the base of the pillars of the 70-year-old bridge has to be encased in fiberglass casings to prevent damage caused by gutkha-laced sputum. KoPT claims that lot of damage has already been done, and work have started on a war footing.
“Severe damage has already been caused by the acidic sputum. Investigations reveal that the thickness of the steel hoods protecting the hangers has reduced half of their original size in the last four years,” A.K. Mehra, chief engineer of KoPT told Gulf News.
“Half-chewed betel leaves, areca nut and slaked lime contain highly caustic substance that corrode away steel. Laced with saliva, gutkha makes a lethal combination. It has affected the stability of the hangers that transfer the load of traffic uniformly across the structure,” Mehra added.
The 86 fiberglass protective hoods are being placed at the base of the hangers to prevent further damage and water from seeping into the junction of the cross-girders and hangers. Installed at a cost of Rs1.5 million (Dh98,450), the grey and maroon fiberglass covers are washable.
“If anyone spits on them, we can easily wash it off. There will be no more risk of chemical reactions caused by gutkha-laced saliva. No one will steal these covers as they don’t have any resale value.
“Moreover, we might also introduce advertisements on the covers after which advertising agencies and companies will maintain them in their own interest,” KoPT officials said.
“The ban on such products has come recently, but this habit of spitting in public places is a nuisance that has continued for years, and has affected such historic structures all over the city. Apart from protecting them, we need to increase public awareness from a very early age,” said an official of the Public Works Department.
According to a 2007 survey by KoPT, more than 120,000 vehicles and 500,000 pedestrians use the bridge daily.
The Howrah Bridge is a cantilever bridge with a suspended span over the Hooghly River in West Bengal and is considered as a marvel of British engineering.
Commissioned in 1943, the bridge was originally named the New Howrah Bridge, because it replaced a pontoon bridge at the same location linking the two cities Howrah and Kolkata. On June 1965 it was renamed Rabindra Setu, after the great Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore.
