As the lockdown has been lifted partially for industries, work on infrastructure projects has started at sites outside city limits of Nagpur. Nagpur Metro Rail Corporation Limited (NMRCL) secured permission from the district administration to carry out work at its sites outside the Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s (NMC) limits.
A NMRCL spokesperson said work on the two depots will soon begin. The sites are expected to be operational in a day or two, said the source. NMRCL has kept 3,000 workers in camps since the lockdown. The work will continue by ensuring social distancing and other norms, said the spokesperson.
A senior officer in the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) said that works on around 24 sites in the Vidarbha and Marathwada region started on Monday itself. The agency hopes to take advantage of stoppage in railway movement due to the lockdown, to take forward work on the Khapri railway over bridge (ROB). The frequent train movement along the tracks on the site hampered the speed earlier. With railways too blocked, the speed can be increased, the source said. Work on the Pardi flyover will also begin, the source added.
The workers are already available at the campsites, said the officer. An officer in the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) said work on the Samruddhi Expressway connecting Nagpur and Mumbai had also begun. A workforce of 18000 workers is available at the campsites, as there was no major impact of migrations there, post-lockdown. The workers stayed because all amenities were available at the camps.
Since the camps were away from villages, the chances of infection were also less, the source said. The Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation (VIDC) will also be seeking permission from respective district collectorates to start work on the irrigation projects. The VIDC has around 4,500 workers at its campsites and the work can be taken up after orders are issued from both, state and Central governments.
Nagpur District collector Ravindra Thakare said every agency that will be meeting safety conditions will be granted permission. Sources, however said that even if work is allowed, the lack of material due to restrictions could be a bottleneck.