Durgam Cheruvu: World’s Longest Concrete Deck Bridge

Nestled in the heart of the City of Pearls, Hyderabad,the Durgam Cheruvu is the longest concrete deck cable bridge of the world. This man-made wonder was inaugurated by the Minister of Municipal Administration & Urban Development, K.T. Rama Rao on 25^th September 2020. The Durgam Cheruvu cable bridge has then proved itself to be an asset for the city’s smooth transport mobility by reducing a major portion of traffic jams.

Constructed with the assistance of 52 external cables, this gigantic structure hasn’t just been providing smooth mobility but also contributed to Hyderabad’s iconic appearance. The 438-metre-long Durgam Cheruvu Bridge was proposed and built under the Road Development Plan of Telangana.

With the construction of the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge, the travel time from Jubilee Hills to Madhapur has been reduced to 10 minutes which was 30 minutes earlier. Also, the world’s longest concrete bridge has reduced the distance by 2 kilometres from the two connecting points.

Construction of the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge

The Durgam Cheruvu Cable Bridge was initially planned to have three to five pillars for providing support to the road but certain environmentalists examined some concerns. Hence, the state government opted for a solid cable-swing bridge. While the tenders for construction were released in 2019, Larsen and Toubro (L&T) won the construction contract. 9 March 2019 was chosen as the initial day for the construction of the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge. Having sidewalks on either side along with a 2-lane carriageway, this infrastructural marvel was believed to be completed for operations by May 2020, but the Global Pandemic caused by Covid-19 caused a delay in the plan.

It’s obvious that the construction of the world’s longest concrete deck bridge wouldn’t have been an easy task to perform. 6,600 cubic metres of concrete, 287 tonnes of cables were imported from Germany along with 4,800 tons of steel to complete the mammoth task. The Director of Larsen and Toubro, SV Desai commented on this massive structure stating the challenges faced in the construction of the bridge amidst the prevailing impact of the pandemic.

Cost of the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge Project

Being the longest concrete deck cable bridge of the world, the cost of this man-made wonder in the city of Hyderabad is 184 crores INR.

Key Facts of The Durgam Cheruvu Bridge 

Interesting Highlights of The Durgam Cheruvu Bridge

Built in the blink of an eye

It’s a fact that infrastructures or government projects take a good time period for their construction and are usually complicated to accomplish.However, this isn’t the case with the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge. The nation’s longest cable connectivity bridge took just 22 months of time to get constructed and ready for operations. Built by Larsen and Toubro, the Durgam Cheruvu Cable Bridge is no less than an infrastructural marvel.

Art in the Form of a Bridge

Unlike other bridges which require support from multiple pillars, the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge has a different story altogether. The specialty of this structure is that it has just two pillars with a total of 52 cables holding the bridge. Moreover, to avoid water logging, the road has vents on either side. This makes it a highlight of the city of Hyderabad.

Light at Night

The Durgam Cheruvu Bridge looks like a flying palace at night. This is because the designing of the structure is done in a way that 26 stayed cables and 40,000 LEDs are installed to make the structure appear stunning. With multiple-coloured lights and numerous themes, the world’s longest deck bridge gives an unforgettable view!

It cost a whopping 9 crore to the government for making the structure a man-made wonder!

 Fun and Fitness

The Durgam Cheruvu Bridge does more than just connecting destinations and reducing mobility time. The Municipal Administration & Urban Development of the state believes that the bridge should be equally advantageous for all the citizens of the state including the pedestrians, cyclists and so on. People often come to the spot for walking and enjoying other activities like cycling as well.

Jaunting Spot

Commonly known among the locals as a Secret Lake, granite rocks encircle the spot. It is also a chillout spot for locals as well as tourists because of multiple activities including boating, camping as well as trekking. For safety reasons, the government has imposed a penalty on people who stop amidst the bridge for taking pictures. The step was taken by the state government after people began to violate traffic rules by clicking pictures amidst traffic jams.

Location of the Durgam Cheruvu Bridge

The Durgam Cheruvu Bridge is built near the Inorbit Mall located in Madhapur. The bridge connects the Jubilee Hills with the Financial District and has proved to be a significant structure in the lives of Hyderabad’s working sector. Commonly called ‘The Hanging Bridge’, Durgam Cheruvu has led to a drastic reduction in traffic jams of the city, especially the area between Jubilee Hills and Madhapur.

Durgam Cheruvu Bridge Timings

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