Kerala cracks Rs.200-cr tunnel projects

The widening work on the six lanes and 35 km road stretch picked up momentum with the construction work on two tunnels that avert climbing of the Kuthiran hills and reducing travel time from six to three hours between Kochi and Coimbatore via Palakkad at an investment of Rs.200 crore. The stretch, which is the first six-lane road in the state involves cutting of two tunnels of 1 km length using Boomer drills, being carried out by Mumbai-based Pragathi Engineering and Rail Project Private Limited. The much-delayed widening work on the National Highway stretch between Vadakkanchery and Mannuthy getting a newer look with 60% of the widening work has been completed and once the tunneling work is completed, the travelling time from Kochi to Coimbatore by road could be reduced drastically as vehicles would not have to negotiate the difficult Ghat road at the Kuthiran hills, said official sources.