Work on PU-PGI underpass to begin soon

Dushyant Singh Pundir

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 14

The UT Administration will soon start the construction of a pedestrian underpass between Panjab University (PU) and the PGI. The underpass will bring relief to thousands of patients and attendants who have to cross the busy road.

Badnore gave nod in Nov 2019

• In November 2019, UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore had given in-principle approval for the construction of the underpass.
• Likely to cost nearly Rs7.20 crore, the underpass will be 15-metre wide and 38-metre long. It will have 12 shops, such as photostat, so that patients or their attendants can get basic facilities at one place.
• Apart from staircase, the underpass will have lifts and escalators to facilitate elderly and patients on wheelchairs.

A senior official of the UT Engineering Department said tenders for the construction of the underpass between the PU gate and the PGI main gate would be floated soon and the work would start by the next month.

Likely to cost nearly Rs7.20 crore, the underpass would be 15-metre wide and 38-metre long. It would have 12 shops, such as Photostat, so that patients or their attendants could get basic facilities at one place.

Apart from staircase, the underpass will have lifts and escalators to facilitate elderly and patients on wheelchairs.

In November 2019, UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore had given in-principle approval for the construction of the underpass.

The traffic police had apprised the Administration of the need for an underpass between the hospital and the university due to a heavy rush of patients and their attendants, as thousands of people from neighbouring states reach the medical institute for treatment every day.

As buses drop passengers on the road opposite the main gate of the hospital, they have to cross the road amid heavy traffic, which is a risky affair.

Also, people have to wait for a long time to cross the road due to heavy traffic on both sides of the road.

After getting approval from the UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore, the Engineering Department had conducted a survey for the construction of the underpass to help hassle-free vehicular and pedestrian movement.

The first pedestrian underpass in the city was constructed to connect Sector 17 and 22 at the bus stand and the second was constructed to connect Sector 17 and the Rose Garden.

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