On Friday, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole visited the Atal Setu, which was constructed at a cost of Rs 17,840 crore, and alleged that cracks had formed on the road after the first spell of rains in Mumbai.
The Atal Setu sea bridge was recently opened. However, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) clarified that minor cracks were discovered on the approach road in Ulwe, which is a service road connecting to the bridge and not a part of the bridge itself.
Patole, who inspected the bridge during the day, asserted that the construction quality was low and that a portion of the road had subsided by a foot.
MMRDA, the project's nodal agency, stated that the cracks were not caused by structural defects and did not pose a threat to the bridge's integrity.
The bridge known as the Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link (MTHL), also called the 'Atal Bihari Vajpayee Sewri-Nhava Sheva Atal Setu', which was opened earlier this year, connects south Mumbai to the satellite city of Navi Mumbai.
This 21.8 km long bridge includes a 16.5 km sea link and consists of six lanes.
The MMRDA discovered minor cracks at three locations on Ramp No. 5, from Ulwe towards Mumbai, during an inspection by the Project's Operation and Maintenance Team.
These areas need immediate repairs. Strabag, the contractor responsible for Package 4 of the Atal Setu project, has initiated the repair work at the specified location. The repairs are expected to be completed within 24 hours without disrupting the bridge's traffic.
Patole accused the Eknath Shinde-led state government of extreme corruption, alleging that they are jeopardising people's safety.
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