The bridge completed with the cost of Rs 2.18 crores has 5.5 metre carriageway with 0.75 metre wide footpaths on either side, falls on 4th km of 6.58 km Singhpora-Kanihama road which has also been constructed by J&K Economic Reconstruction Agency (J&K ERA) under the transport sector of Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded Multisector project for infrastructure Rehabilitation.

The 6.58 Km Singhpora-Kanihama road is a vital detour between Srinagar-Gulmarg and Srinagar –Baramulla road providing all weather connectivity to the population of around 30,000 people who inhabit many villages on both sides of the road stretch. It will also provide them with improved access to market their agricultural / horticultural produce besides providing them with improved access to the nearby districts of Baramulla, Budgam and Srinagar.

Jammu and Kashmir Economic Reconstruction Agency (J&K ERA) has completed work on two mega storm water drainage projects along National highway byepass. The work on two mega projects was taken up by J&K ERA under the urban component of its MPIR (Multisector project for infrastructure Rehabilitation ) funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Work on construction of drainage network of Pohru chowk-chanapora storm water drainage project and Bemina Chowk –Fruitmandi storm water drainage project had already been completed while as work on construction of pump house which includes providing and installation of mechanical & electrical equipments for pump house near chanapora bridge having design discharge of 1.15 Cumecs and on another pump house near Bemina Fruitmandi is being given finishing touches. This was stated to Saurabh Bhagat, Chief Executive Officer, J&K ERA during his site visit to the projects. Naresh Langeh, Director J&K ERA (Urban) informed CEO, J&K ERA that work on both of these projects has been completed and are ready for commissioning.

Langeh further said that Pohru chowk -Chanapora storm water drainage project will benefit population of more than 10,000 people living in the catchment area of the project spread over 1.10 sq.kms which includes residential areas like Alama Iqbal colony, Baghi-Mehtab, Beigh pora Garden lane, Chanapora parts of Murtaza colony, Sheikh Noorudin colony, Umar colony etc while as Bemina- Fruitmandi storm water drainage project with catchment area of 2.97 sq.km will benefit population of about 19,600 people living in the colonies like Parimpora, Sir Syed abad, Police colony,SDA colony, Shamsabad,Owais colony, Usmania colony, Al-Hamza Colony, Gulshan Abad, Mansoor colony etc.

Saurabh Bhagat, Chief Executive Officer, J&K ERA asked engineers to initiate formalities for earliest commissioning of both projects so that people living in the area are able to benefit from the projects before the onset of coming rainy season and get relief the frequent flooding which people living in these areas had to face during torrential rains and winter season.

During the four day visit to the valley the two member team visited sites of some proposed projects which include projects for construction of new water supply transmission mains to further augment the supply of safe drinking water in Srinagar city, construction of storm water drainage/ sewerage projects and some new projects for the improvement of urban transportation in the city.

The team visited site of proposed raw water transmission main from Rangil to Harwan which would involve laying of closed ductile pipeline from Rangil head works to Harwan Reservoir as an alternate to existing open raw water channel. The project would prevent pollution of raw water, prevent distribution losses, provide conditions for adequate flow of raw water besides reducing the need for pumping water from Dal Lake for Nishat Water treatment Plant thus help in saving the power.

The team also visited the sites for extension of storm water drainage schemes already constructed by J&K ERA under phase-1 along the NH bye pass during which the team also had an interaction with the locals who apprised them about the problems being faced by them due to water logging during rainy season. The team had a an elaborate discussions regarding the technical, social and environmental aspects of the proposed with Naresh Langeh, Director tranche-3 J&KERA,Alok Mengi,Director Central, J&K ERA, S.L Kapoor, Project Manager, JKUSDIP, Kashmir and other senior officers of J&K ERA who accompanied ADB team during the site visits.

The loan agreement to this effect was signed in New Delhi between Nilaya Mitash, Joint Secretary (Multilateral institutions), DEA (Department of Economic Affairs) Ministry of Finance on behalf of Government of India and Hun Kim, Country Director (ADB) (India) on behalf of Asian Development Bank. The related project agreements were signed by Saurabh Bhagat, Chief Executive Officer, J&K ERA on behalf of Govt. of J&K and Shaugafta Qazi, Director Finance,J&K ERA on behalf of J&K ERA.

Speaking after the signing ceremony Mitash said” The project will support the state to increase the availability of per capita safe drinking water from current level of 90 litres/day/capita to 135 litres/day/capita and will also help to reduce inner city traffic congestions thus resulting in positive economic impacts”.

Hun Kim, Country Director (India) (ADB) while terming J&K ERA as one of the best executing agency for ADB funded projects in India said that project also aims at providing for more efficient and accountable O&M (operation and maintenance) of water supply and sewerage services in the two capital cities and will also include a component for capacity development of for the staff and representatives of urban local bodies to enable them to provide better services.

Director Urban, J&K ERA Naresh Langeh today reviewed progress of Urban Projects being executed by J&K ERA in Srinagar city under the urban sector of its Multisector Project for Infrastructure Rehabilitation (MPIR) funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB).

S.L Kapoor,Project Manager, Urban, J&K ERA, Kashmir informed him that under urban sector in Srinagar city ,J&K ERA had taken up work on 11 sub-projects which were estimated to cost Rs 260 crores out of which work on 3 major mega water supply schemes has already been completed and commissioned and has resulted in much needed improvement and augmentation of safe drinking water in the Srinagar city and directly benefitted 8 lakh people living in Srinagar city.

Giving details about storm water drainage schemes being executed by J&K ERA in uptown Srinagar,Kapoor said that work on one namely Rawalpora-Tengpora sub-project stands already completed while as work on construction of Pohru chowk – Chanapora bridge and Fruitmandi – Bemina Chowk sub-projects has been substantially completed.

Later Director, Urban, J&K ERA conducted site inspection of various ERA executed urban projects in Srinagar city which included some drainage and water supply projects. He also inspected progress of work on construction of zero discharge sedimentation tanks at Doodhganga, Nishat and Rangil Water treatment plants which are being constructed to prevent the pollution of water bodies due to discharge of untreated backwash water.

Director ERA impressed upon engineers, consultants and contractors to work with team spirit to ensure systematic and earliest possible completion of works.

Shri Khalid Muzaffar, Director Central, J&K ERA reviewed the progress of work on rehabilitation complexes being constructed for the rehabilitation of shopkeepers to be displaced by the construction of Jehangir Chowk -Rambagh Express way corridor (Flyover).The work on two rehabilitation complexes at Jehangir chowk and near Rambagh crossing have been allotted to JKPCC (Jammu & Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation) and is being taken up under the rehabilitation component of Jehangir Chowk-Rambagh Expressway corridor.

During the meeting General Manager, JKPCC informed Director Central, J&K ERA that construction of 90 shops and 30 godowns at Jehangir Chowk Rehabilitation complex has been completed and finishing touches are being given to these and work on approach road to complex has also been taken up. He said that work on shops, god owns and approach road shall be completed and handed over to J&K ERA by middle of January, 2013.

Director Central, J&K ERA also conducted site inspection to the under construction rehabilitation complexes along with General Manager, Deputy General Manager and Architect of JKPCC during which detailed discussions were held regarding the timelines set for the completion of said complexes in view of the pre-award requirement of the ADB (Asian Development Bank). Shopkeepers of central market also met Director Central during the site visit who were requested to vacate 2 shops falling on the approach road to rehab complex at Jehangir Chowk so that hassle free access to shopping complex is ensured.

Director Central, J&K ERA emphasized upon officers of JKPCC to further expedite the pace of work on rehabilitation complexes at Jehangir Chowk and Rambagh since ADB has already approved Technical Bid Evaluation report for the project and has made opening of price bids conditional upon the rehabilitation of 90 shopkeepers who are likely to be displaced during construction of Flyover.

Pertinent to mention the Govt of J&K has already constituted the high level committee under the chairmanship of Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir for fast tracking of the land acquisition process in the expressway project and so far this Divisional level committee has taken very vital decisions for acquisition of govt and private properties including transfer of land under Army, BSNL etc.
Project Manager, JKUSDIP, J&K ERA, Kashmir, Deputy Project Manager, JKUSDIP, J&K ERA ,Kashmir and other officers of J&K ERA also accompanied the Director Central, J&K ERA during the site visit.

Two –day workshop on “procurement practices” in ADB funded projects organized by Asian Development Bank at hotel Grand Mumtaz for the project implementation staff of J&K ERA and engineers associated with procurement responsibilities in other govt line departments concluded here today.

In his inaugural address Shri Saurabh Bhagat,Chief Executive Officer,J&K ERA thanked ADB for organizing the workshop as it provides an opportunity for better understanding of ADB procurement policies to project implementation staff and clear their doubts if any on the procurement aspects of the project which is very vital for achieving the intended benefits of the project and at the same time provides opportunity for engineers working in other line departments in the state to know about the procurement procedures adopted in internationally funded infrastructure development projects. “It is necessary that ADB procurement policies are adequately mastered by ERA at all levels so as to ensure procurement process is undertaken in an efficient, economic and transparent manner” said Bhagat. He also stressed on the need to have more such workshops on other aspects of infrastructure projects to maintain continuity in knowledge sharing between project funding and project executing agencies and provides a platform to discuss various issues that are encountered during the procurement and other stages of infrastructure project implementation.He asked participants to take maximum benefit out of the workshop.

Inaugural session was followed by a daylong session on Procurement procedures for ADB funded projects during which Mr. Hiroyuki Murayama, Resident Procurement Specialist (ADB) and Mr Chandra Mohan Arora,Procurement Expert (ADB) briefed participants about the various stages of procurement under ADB funded projects like ;bid packaging / bidding procedures,preparation of bidding documents,bid evaluation,award of contract. It was followed by brainstorming session between project implementation staff of J&K ERA and ADB experts on various complicated issues that may arise during bidding stage.

On second day of the workshop ADB Resource persons briefed participants about ADB guidelines on use of consultants,Consultant Selection Methods, Type of Contracts, Preparation of EOI / RFP, Evaluation of Technical & financial proposals, Managing and Evaluation of Consultants.

Workshop was also attended by Khalid Muzaffar, Director Central J&K ERA, Vinod Sharma, Director Urban/safeguard, J&K ERA, O.K Chadgal, Director Transport,J&K ERA,Shagufta Qazi,Director Finance, J&K ERA,Naresh Langeh,Director,J&K ERA, Design and supervision consultants and Project Management Consultant of J&K ERA and several engineers from JKPCC,PWD(R&B),PMGSY,PHED,SDA,SMC and other line departments.
Earlier last week a two-day workshop on procurement practices of ADB for Jammu based staff of J&K ERA and engineers from other line departments of Jammu division was organized by ADB in Jammu between 15th -16th Oct,2012.

Chief Executive Officer, Shri Saurabh Bhagat, Jammu and Kashmir Economic Reconstruction Agency (J&KERA) during his day long site inspection of bridge projects being executed by agency under Transport sector of its ongoing Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded Multisector Project for Infrastructure Rehabilitation (MPIR) today directed engineers and consultants to ensure the completion of work on remaining bridge sub-projects in Kashmir division before the onset of winter season.

Director Transport, Shri O.K Chadgal informed CEO ERA that under bridge component of ADB funded MPIR, J&K ERA had taken up work on construction of 22 bridges in Kashmir out of which work on 11 bridges has already been completed while as work on remaining 11 bridges is underway. Chadgal said agency has so far spent Rs 51.36 crores on construction of these bridges.

During his site visit CEO ERA inspected progress of work on Sonwani Bridge over Pohru nallah in Kupwara and directed contractor and engineers working on the project to further accelerate pace of work on bridge to ensure that bridge is thrown open for traffic at earliest. He also inspected progress of work on Kunzer-Chanapora and Kanihama in Baramulla and Padshahi bagh bridge in Srinagar. He directed contractors to deploy more machinery and labour on site and instructed engineers and consultants to resolve technical matters regarding the project on war footing to ensure completion of these bridges before the onset of winter season in Kashmir. CEO ERA also gave instructions for imposing of penalties against non-performing contractors.

J&K ERA has also taken up construction of two bridges in Ladakh division, Tharmsu-Pushkum in Kargil and Urbis bridge in Leh.These bridges are to be constructed with the total cost of Rs 5.28 crores.

Most of these bridges are in remote areas of Kashmir division and have been taken up an aim to providing people living in these far flung areas with all weather connectivity, improved access to markets, health and educational facilities.

J&K ERA has so far spend Rs 156 crores on improving the inter- district connectivity in North Kashmir Districts of Baramulla, Kupwara and Bandipore.. Under the transport sector of its ongoing MPIR (Multisector Project for Infrastructure Rehablitation) funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB) J&K ERA agency had taken up work on (9) major road packages having total road length of more than 160 Kms

This was stated to Chief Executive Officer, J&K ERA Shri Saurabh Bhagat during his day long site visit to road projects being executed by J&K ERA In Frontier district of Kupwara and Baramulla . O.K Chadgal Director Transport, J&K ERA informed CEO J&K ERA that so far agency has already completed work on (5) major road packages which include improvement and up gradation of 27.3 Km Sangrama-Sopore-Kulangam Road,15.79 Km Potkah-Pachar Road,15.63 Km Sumbal-Markundal Road, 20.13 Km Watergam-Behrampora road and 6.63 Km Singhpora-Kanihama Road and has achieved (90% - 95%) physical progress on 13.5 Km Kralgund-Ashpora Road and 17 Km Handwara-Zachaldara Road. He further said that work on 30.87 Km Sopore-Bandipore and 15.5 Km Shahdra-Kamalkote packages are also underway in full swing.

CEO ERA inspected progress of work on Sonwani Bridge over Pohru nallah in Kupwara and directed contractor and engineers working on the project to further accelerate pace of work on bridge and ensure that bridge is thrown open for traffic at earliest CEO ERA also inspected macadamisation work presently underway on Handwara_Zachaldara road and directed contractors and engineers to ensure strict compliance to quality control parameters and project deadlines During his site visit to north Kashmir projects CEO ERA also interacted with locals who acknowledged that upgradation of road network in these remote areas has improved their access to health, education and market facilities.

J&K ERA has so far spend Rs 208 crores on improving the inter- district connectivity and providing better road access to world famous tourist destinations of Aharbal & Pahalgam in South Kashmir.. Under the transport sector of its ongoing MPIR (Multisector Project for Infrastructure Rehablitation) funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB) J&K ERA agency had taken up work on (5) major road sub-projects having total road length of more than 115 Kms. The road sub-projects taken up for execution by J&K ERA in south Kashmir included improvement and upgradtaion of 38 Km Pampore-Ladhoo-Khrew-Lethpora loop Road, 24 Km Natipora-Newa- Pulwama road, 24 Km Habdipora-Kaddar-Qaimoh road,29 km Bijbehra –Langanbal Road(detour to Pahalgam), 38 Km Wonpoh-Chawalgam-Aharbal Road and agency has also taken up construction of (6) bridge sub-projects namely Soafshali,Laktipora,Sail, Tokina ,Kirkadal and Wahibugh bridges out of which work on Soafshali and Laktipora bridges has been completed while as work on remaining is nearing completion.

This was stated to Chief Executive Officer ,J&K ERA Shri Saurabh Bhagat during his exhaustive day long site visit to south Kashmir road projects being executed by J&K ERA Shri O.K Chadgal Director Transport, J&K ERA informed CEO J&K ERA that so far agency has completed work on 38 Km long Pampore- Ladhoo-Khrew-wayun-Lethpora loop Road (road stands already commissioned) and work on on 29 Km Bijbehra-Langanbal 24 Km Natipora-New Pulwama road and 42 Km Wonpoh-Chawalgam-Aharbal and 24 Km Habdipora-Kaddar-Qaimoh road projects is nearing completion since more than 90% physical progress has been achieved on these. CEO ERA also inspected macadamisation work presently underway on Habdipora- Qaimoh road and directed contractors and engineers to ensure strict compliance to quality control parameters and project deadlines.CEO ERA also inspected work on Wonpoh-Aharbal and Natipora-New Pulwama road and also interacted with locals during inspection of work who acknowledged that upgradation of road network in these remote areas has improved their access to health, education and market facilities.

Later CEO ERA also inspected work on some bridges in south Kashmir which include Tokina bridge near Chersoo and construction of bridge near Wahibugh in Pulwama. During his visit to Tokina bridge CEO instructed engineers to immediately start macadimistaion work on road stretch leading to Tokina bridge from National highway.