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The Howrah Bridge is a balanced
cantilever A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a canti ...
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
over the
Hooghly River The Bhagirathi Hooghly River (Anglicized alternatively spelled ''Hoogli'' or ''Hugli'') or the 'Bhāgirathi-Hooghly', called the Ganga or the Kati-Ganga in mythological texts, is the eastern distributary of the Ganges River in West Bengal, Indi ...
in
West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
. Commissioned in 1943, the bridge was originally named the New Howrah Bridge, because it replaced a
pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports limits the maxi ...
at the same location linking the cities of
Howrah Howrah (, , alternatively spelled as Haora) is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. Howrah is located on the western bank of the Hooghly River opposite its twin city of Kolkata. Administratively it lies within Howrah district, and is th ...
and
Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
(Calcutta). On 14 June 1965, it was renamed Rabindra Setu after the great
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
poet
Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
, who was the first Indian and Asian
Nobel laureate The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...
. It is still popularly known as the Howrah Bridge. The bridge is one of four on the
Hooghly River The Bhagirathi Hooghly River (Anglicized alternatively spelled ''Hoogli'' or ''Hugli'') or the 'Bhāgirathi-Hooghly', called the Ganga or the Kati-Ganga in mythological texts, is the eastern distributary of the Ganges River in West Bengal, Indi ...
and is a famous symbol of
Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
and
West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
. The other bridges are the
Vidyasagar Setu Vidyasagar Setu, also known as the Second Hooghly Bridge, is a toll bridge over the Hooghly River in West Bengal, India, linking the cities of Kolkata and Howrah. Opened in 1992, with a total length of , Vidyasagar Setu is the first and longes ...
(popularly called the Second Hooghly Bridge), the
Vivekananda Setu Vivekananda Setu (also called Willingdon Bridge and Bally Bridge) is a bridge over the Hooghly River in West Bengal, India. It links the city of Howrah, at Bally, to Kolkata, at Dakshineswar. Completed on 1931, it is a multispan truss bridge ...
and the relatively new
Nivedita Setu Second Vivekananda Bridge (also called Nivedita Setu) is a multi-span extradosed bridge completed 2007 over Hooghly River connecting Howrah with Kolkata, in West Bengal. It runs parallel to and about 50 m downstream of the old Vivekananda Setu ...
. It carries a daily
traffic Traffic comprises pedestrians, vehicles, ridden or herded animals, trains, and other conveyances that use public ways (roads) for travel and transportation. Traffic laws govern and regulate traffic, while rules of the road include traffic ...
of approximately 100,000 vehicles and possibly more than 150,000 pedestrians, easily making it the busiest cantilever bridge in the world. The third-longest cantilever bridge at the time of its construction, the Howrah Bridge is currently the sixth-longest bridge of its type in the world.


History


1862 proposal by Turnbull

In 1862, the Government of Bengal asked George Turnbull, chief engineer of the
East Indian Railway Company The East Indian Railway Company, operating as the East Indian Railway (reporting mark EIR), introduced railways to East India and North India, while the Companies such as the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, South Indian Railway, Bombay, Barod ...
to study the feasibility of bridging the Hooghly River. He had recently established the company's rail terminus in Howrah. He reported on 19 March, with large-scale drawings and estimates, that: :* The foundations for a bridge at Calcutta would be at a considerable depth and cost because of the depth of the mud there. :* The impediment to shipping would be considerable. :* A good place for the bridge was at Pulta Ghat "about a dozen miles north of Calcutta" where a "bed of stiff clay existed at no great depth under the river bed". :* A suspended-girder bridge of five spans of and two spans would be ideal.


Pontoon bridge

In view of the increasing traffic across the Hooghly river, a committee was appointed in 1855–56 to review alternatives for constructing a bridge across it. The plan was shelved in 1859–60, to be revived in 1868, when it was decided that a bridge should be constructed and a newly appointed trust vested to manage it. The
Calcutta Port Trust Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, commer ...
was founded in 1870, and the Legislative department of the then Government of Bengal passed the Howrah Bridge Act in the year 1871 under the Bengal Act IX of 1871, empowering the lieutenant-governor to have the bridge constructed with Government capital under the aegis of the Port Commissioners. Eventually a contract was signed with Sir Bradford Leslie to construct a
pontoon bridge A pontoon bridge (or ponton bridge), also known as a floating bridge, uses float (nautical), floats or shallow-draft (hull), draft boats to support a continuous deck for pedestrian and vehicle travel. The buoyancy of the supports limits the maxi ...
. Different parts of the bridge were constructed in England and shipped to Calcutta, where they were assembled. The assembling period was fraught with problems. The bridge was considerably damaged by the great cyclone on 20 March 1874. A steamer named ''Egeria'' broke from her moorings and collided head-on with the bridge, sinking three pontoons and damaging nearly 200 feet of the bridge. The bridge was complete in 1874, at a total cost of 2.2 million, and opened to traffic on 17 October of that year. The bridge was then 1528 ft long and 62 ft wide, with 7-foot wide pavements on either side. Initially the bridge was periodically unfastened to allow steamers and other marine vehicles to pass through. Before 1906, the bridge used to be undone for the passage of vessels during daytime only. Since June of that year it started opening at night for all vessels except ocean steamers, which were required to pass through during daytime. From 19 August 1879, the bridge was illuminated by electric lamp-posts, powered by the dynamo at the Mullick Ghat Pumping Station. As the bridge could not handle the rapidly increasing load, the Port Commissioners started planning in 1905 for a new improved bridge.


Plans for a new bridge

In 1906 the Port Commission appointed a committee headed by R.S. Highet, chief engineer,
East Indian Railway The East Indian Railway Company, operating as the East Indian Railway (reporting mark EIR), introduced railways to East India and North India, while the Companies such as the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, South Indian Railway, Bombay, Barod ...
and W.B. MacCabe, chief engineer, Calcutta Corporation. They submitted a report stating that The committee considered six options: # Large ferry steamers capable of carrying vehicular load (set up cost 900,000, annual cost 438,000) # A transporters bridge (set up cost 2 million) # A tunnel (set up cost 338.2 million, annual maintenance cost 1,779,000) # A bridge on piers (set up cost 22.5 million) # A floating bridge (set up cost 2,140,000, annual maintenance cost 200,000) # An arched bridge The committee eventually decided on a floating bridge. It extended tenders to 23 firms for its design and construction. Prize money of £3,000 (45,000, at the then exchange rate) was declared for the firm whose design would be accepted.


Planning and estimation

The initial construction process of the bridge was stalled due to
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, although the bridge was partially renewed in 1917 and 1927. In 1921 a committee of engineers named the 'Mukherjee Committee' was formed, headed by R. N. Mukherji, Sir Clement Hindley, chairman of Calcutta Port Trust and J. McGlashan, Chief Engineer. They referred the matter to Sir Basil Mott, who proposed a single span
arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ...
. Charles Alfred O'Grady one of the Engineers In 1922, the New Howrah Bridge Commission was set up, to which the Mukherjee Committee submitted its report. In 1926 the New Howrah Bridge Act passed. In 1930 the Goode Committee was formed, comprising S.W. Goode as president, S.N. Mallick, and W.H. Thompson, to investigate and report on the advisability of constructing a pier bridge between Calcutta and Howrah. Based on their recommendation, M/s. Rendel, Palmer and Tritton were asked to consider the construction of a
suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...
of a particular design prepared by their chief draftsman Mr. Walton. On basis of the report, a global tender was floated. The lowest bid came from a German company, but due to increasing political tensions between Germany and Great Britain in 1935, it was not given the contract. The Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Co. was awarded the construction contract that year. The New Howrah Bridge Act was amended in 1935 to reflect this, and construction of the bridge started the next year.


Construction

The bridge does not have nuts and bolts, but was formed by riveting the whole structure. It consumed 26,500 tons of steel, out of which 23,000 tons of high-tensile alloy steel, known as Tiscrom, were supplied by
Tata Steel Tata Steel Limited is an Indian multinational steel-making company, based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand and headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is a part of the Tata Group. Formerly known as Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited (TISCO), Tata ...
. The main tower was constructed with single monolith caissons of dimensions 55.31m× 24.8m with 21 shafts, each 6.25 metre square. The Chief Engineer of the Port Trust, Mr. J. McGlashan, wanted to replace the pontoon bridge, with a permanent structure, as the present bridge interfered with north–south river traffic. Work could not be started as World War I (1914–1918) broke out. Then in 1926 a commission under the chairmanship of Sir R. N. Mukherjee recommended a suspension bridge of a particular type to be built across the River Hoogly. The bridge was designed by one Mr. Walton of M/s Rendel, Palmer & Triton. The order for construction and erection was placed on M/s.Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company in 1939. Again World War II (1939–1945) intervened. All the steel that was to come from England were diverted for war effort in Europe. Out of 26,000 tons of steel, that was required for the bridge, only 3000 tons were supplied from England. In spite of the Japanese threat, the then (British) government of India pressed on with the construction. Tata Steel were asked to supply the remaining 23,000 tons of high tension steel. The Tatas developed the quality of steel required for the bridge and called it Tiscom. The entire 23,000 tons was supplied in time. The fabrication and erection work was awarded to a local engineering firm of Howrah: the Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Co. The two anchorage caissons were each 16.4 m by 8.2 m, with two wells 4.9 m square. The caissons were so designed that the working chambers within the shafts could be temporarily enclosed by steel diaphragms to allow work under compressed air if required. The caisson at Kolkata side was set at 31.41 m and that at Howrah side at 26.53 m below ground level. One night, during the process of grabbing out the muck to enable the caisson to move, the ground below it yielded, and the entire mass plunged two feet, shaking the ground. The impact of this was so intense that the
seismograph A seismometer is an instrument that responds to ground noises and shaking such as caused by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and explosions. They are usually combined with a timing device and a recording device to form a seismograph. The output ...
at
Kidderpore Khidirpur or Kidderpore is a neighborhood of metropolitan Kolkata (Calcutta), in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India. Etymology Most plausibly, the name is a corruption of ''Khidrpur'' or ''Khizarpur'', Khizr/Khidr being the guardian sai ...
registered it as an
earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...
and a
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
on the shore was destroyed, although it was subsequently rebuilt. While muck was being cleared, numerous varieties of objects were brought up, including anchors, grappling irons, cannons, cannonballs, brass vessels, and coins dating back to the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
. The job of sinking the caissons was carried out round-the-clock at a rate of a foot or more per day. The caissons were sunk through soft river deposits to a stiff yellow clay 26.5 m below ground level. The accuracy of sinking the huge caissons was exceptionally precise, within 50–75 mm of the true position. After penetrating 2.1 m into clay, all shafts were plugged with
concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...
after individual dewatering, with some 5 m of backfilling in adjacent shafts. The main
pier image:Brighton Pier, Brighton, East Sussex, England-2Oct2011 (1).jpg, Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century. A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of ...
s on the Howrah side were sunk by open wheel
dredging Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing da ...
, while those on the Kolkata side required compressed air to counter running sand. The air pressure maintained was about 40 lbs per square inch (2.8
bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...
), which required about 500 workers to be employed. Whenever excessively soft soil was encountered, the shafts symmetrical to the caisson axes were left unexcavated to allow strict control. In very stiff clays, a large number of the internal wells were completely undercut, allowing the whole weight of the caisson to be carried by the outside
skin friction Skin friction drag is a type of aerodynamic or hydrodynamic drag, which is resistant force exerted on an object moving in a fluid. Skin friction drag is caused by the viscosity of fluids and is developed from laminar drag to turbulent drag as a f ...
and the bearing under the external wall. Skin friction on the outside of the monolith walls was estimated at 29 kN/m2 while loads on the cutting edge in clay overlying the founding stratum reached 100 tonnes/m. The work on the foundation was completed in November 1938. By the end of 1940, the erection of the cantilevered arms was commenced and was completed in mid-summer of 1941. The two halves of the suspended span, each 282 feet (86 m) long and weighing 2,000 tons, were built in December 1941. The bridge was erected by commencing at the two anchor spans and advancing towards the center, with the use of creeper cranes moving along the upper chord. 16 hydraulic jacks, each of which had an 800-ton capacity, were pressed into service to join the two halves of the suspended span. The entire project cost 25 million ( £2,463,887). The project was a pioneer in bridge construction, particularly in India, but the government did not have a formal opening of the bridge due to fears of attacks by Japanese planes fighting the Allied Powers. Japan had attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. The first vehicle to use the bridge was a solitary
tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
. The bridge is regarded "The Gateway to Kolkata, as it connects the city to Howrah Station".


Description


Specifications

When commissioned in 1943, Howrah was the 3rd-longest cantilever bridge in the world, behind Pont de Québec () in Canada and
Forth Bridge The Forth Bridge is a cantilever railway bridge across the Firth of Forth in the east of Scotland, west of central Edinburgh. Completed in 1890, it is considered a symbol of Scotland (having been voted Scotland's greatest man-made wonder in ...
() in Scotland. It has since been surpassed by three bridges, making it the sixth-longest cantilever bridge in the world in 2013. It is a suspension type balanced cantilever bridge, with a central span between centers of main towers and a suspended span of . The main towers are high above the monoliths and apart at the top. The anchor arms are each, while the cantilever arms are each. The bridge deck hangs from panel points in the lower chord of the main
truss A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure. In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembl ...
es with 39 pairs of hangers. The roadways beyond the towers are supported from ground, leaving the anchor arms free from deck load. The deck system includes cross girders suspended between the pairs of hangers by a pinned connection. Six rows of longitudinal stringer girders are arranged between cross girders. Floor beams are supported transversally on top of the stringers, while themselves supporting a continuous pressed steel troughing system surfaced with
concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...
. The longitudinal expansion and lateral sway movement of the deck are taken care of by expansion and articulation joints. There are two main expansion joints, one at each interface between the suspended span and the cantilever arms and there are others at the towers and at the interface of the steel and concrete structures at both approach. There are total 8 articulation joints, 3 at each of the cantilever arms and 1 each in the suspended portion. These joints divide the bridge into segments with vertical pin connection between them to facilitate rotational movements of the deck. The bridge deck has longitudinal ruling
gradient In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar-valued differentiable function of several variables is the vector field (or vector-valued function) \nabla f whose value at a point p is the "direction and rate of fastest increase". If the gradi ...
of 1 in 40 from either end, joined by a vertical curve of radius . The cross gradient of deck is 1 in 48 between kerbs.


Traffic

The bridge serves as the gateway to
Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
, connecting it to the
Howrah Station Howrah railway station, also known as Howrah Junction, is a railway station located in the city of Howrah, West Bengal, India. It is also the oldest and largest existing railway complex in India. It is one of the busiest train stations in the w ...
, which is one of the five intercity train terminus stations serving Howrah and Kolkata. As such, it carries the near entirety of the traffic to and from the station, taking its average daily traffic close to nearly 150,000 pedestrians and 100,000 vehicles. In 1946, a census of the daily traffic was taken, which counted 27,400 vehicles, 121,100 pedestrians and 2,997 cattle. The bulk of the vehicular traffic comes from buses and cars. Prior to 1993, the bridge also carried trams.
Trams A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
departed from the terminus at Howrah station towards
Sealdah Sealdah is a neighbourhood of Central Kolkata in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Etymology Jackals (''sheal'' in Bengali) howled around Sealdah. Antiquarians identify it as Shrigaldwipa (Jackal Island). Nearby Beliaghata wa ...
, Rajabazar,
Shyambazar Shyambazar is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata North Kolkata encompasses the northern part of Kolkata, including the city's oldest neighbourhood. Shyambazar, Bagbazar, Kumartuli, Shobhabazar, Posta, Jorasanko, Rajabazar, Phoolbagan, Mani ...
, High Court,
Dalhousie Square B. B. D. Bagh, formerly called Tank Square and then Dalhousie Square (1847 to 1856), is the shortened version for Benoy-Badal-Dinesh Bagh. It is the seat of power of the state government, as well as the central business district of Kolkata in ...
,
Park Circus Park Circus is a neighbourhood of Central-South Kolkata, in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India. Geography Police district Karaya police station is in the South-east division of Kolkata Police. Karaya Women police station, at the same a ...
,
Ballygunge Ballygunge is a locality of South Kolkata, in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India. History The East India Company obtained from the Mughal emperor Farrukhsiyar, in 1717, the right to rent from 38 villages surrounding their settlement. Of thes ...
,
Tollygunge Tollygunge (Bengali: টালিগঞ্জ; nicknamed 'Mini Mumbai' or 'Mini Bombay') is a locality of South Kolkata, in West Bengal, India. It is famed as the centre of the Indian film industry, known as Tollywood, Marathi Cinema, South Indi ...
etc. In 1993, tram service on the bridge was discontinued due to the increasing load on the structure. However, the bridge still continues to carry much more than the expected load. A 2007 report revealed that nearly 90,000 vehicles were plying on the bridge daily (15,000 of which were goods-carrying), though its load-bearing capacity is only 60,000. One of the main reasons for the overloading was that, although vehicles carrying up to 15 tonnes are allowed on the structure, vehicles with 12-18 wheels and carrying loads up to 25 tonnes often plied on it. From 31 May 2007 onwards, overloaded trucks were banned from crossing the bridge and were redirected to the
Vidyasagar Setu Vidyasagar Setu, also known as the Second Hooghly Bridge, is a toll bridge over the Hooghly River in West Bengal, India, linking the cities of Kolkata and Howrah. Opened in 1992, with a total length of , Vidyasagar Setu is the first and longes ...
instead. The road is flanked by footpaths wide, which are thronged with pedestrians.


Maintenance

The
Kolkata Port Trust Port of Kolkata or Kolkata Port, officially known as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust (formerly Kolkata Port Trust), is the only riverine major port of India, located in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, around from the sea. It is the olde ...
(KoPT) is vested with the maintenance of the bridge. The bridge has been subject to damage from vehicles due to rash driving, and corrosion due to atmospheric conditions and biological wastes. In October 2008, 6 high-tech surveillance cameras were placed to monitor the entire long and wide structure from the control room. Two of the cameras were placed under the floor of the bridge to track the movement of barges, steamers and boats on the river, while the other four were fixed to the first layer of beams — one at each end and two in the middle — to monitor vehicle movements. This was in response to substantial damage caused to the bridge from collisions with vehicles, so that compensation could be claimed from the miscreants. Corrosion has been caused by bird droppings and human spitting. An investigation in 2003 revealed that as a result of prolonged chemical reaction caused by continuous collection of bird excreta, several joints and parts of the bridge were damaged. As an immediate measure, the Kolkata Port Trust engaged contractors to regularly clean the bird droppings, at an annual expense of . In 2004, KoPT spent to paint the entirety of of the bridge. Two coats of
aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...
paint, with a primer of
zinc chromate Zinc chromate, Zn Cr O4, is a chemical compound containing the chromate anion, appearing as odorless yellow powder or yellow-green crystals, but, when used for coatings, pigments are often added. It is used industrially in chromate conversion c ...
before that, was applied on the bridge, requiring a total of 26,500 litres of paint. The bridge is also considerably damaged by pedestrians
spitting Spitting is the act of forcibly ejecting saliva or other substances from the mouth. The act is often done to get rid of unwanted or foul-tasting substances in the mouth, or to get rid of a large buildup of mucus. Spitting of small saliva drop ...
out acidic,
lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...
-mixed stimulants (
gutka Gutka, ghutka, guṭkha or betel quid is a chewing tobacco preparation made of crushed areca nut (also called betel nut), tobacco, catechu, paraffin wax, slaked lime (Calcium hydroxide) and sweet or savory flavourings, in India, Pakistan, other ...
and
paan Betel nut chewing, also called betel quid chewing or areca nut chewing, is a practice in which areca nuts (also called "betel nuts") are chewed together with slaked lime and betel leaves for their stimulant and narcotic effects. The practice ...
). A technical inspection by Port Trust officials in 2011 revealed that spitting had reduced the thickness of the steel hoods protecting the pillars from six to less than three millimeters since 2007. The hangers need those hoods at the base to prevent water seeping into the junction of the cross-girders and hangers, and damage to the hoods can jeopardize the safety of the bridge. KoPT announced that it will spend on covering the base of the steel pillars with
fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...
casing to prevent spit from corroding them. On 24 June 2005, a private
cargo vessel A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...
''M V Mani'', belonging to the Ganges Water Transport Pvt. Ltd, while trying to pass under the bridge during high tide, had its
funnel A funnel is a tube or pipe that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, used for guiding liquid or powder into a small opening. Funnels are usually made of stainless steel, aluminium, glass, or plastic. The material used in its construct ...
stuck underneath for three hours, causing substantial damage worth about 15 million to the stringer and longitudinal girder of the bridge. Some of the 40 cross-girders were also broken. Two of four trolley guides, bolted and welded with the girders, were extensively damaged. Nearly of of the track were twisted beyond repair. The damage was so severe that KoPT requested help from Rendall-Palmer & Tritton Limited, the original consultant on the bridge from UK. KoPT also contacted
SAIL A sail is a tensile structure—which is made from fabric or other membrane materials—that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail-powered land vehicles. Sails may ...
for 'matching steel' used during its construction in 1943. For the repair, which cost around , about 8 tonnes of steel was used. The repairs were completed in early 2006.


Cultural significance

The bridge has been shown in numerous films, such as
Bimal Roy Bimal Roy (12 July 1909 – 8 January 1966) was an Indian film director. He is particularly noted for his realistic and socialistic films such as ''Do Bigha Zamin'', ''Parineeta (1953 film), Parineeta'', ''Biraj Bahu'', ''Devdas (1955 film), D ...
's 1953 film ''
Do Bigha Zamin ''Do Bigha Zamin'' () is a 1953 Indian Hindi-language drama film directed by Bimal Roy. Based on Rabindranath Tagore's Bengali poem " Dui Bigha Jomi", the film stars Balraj Sahni, Nirupa Roy in lead roles. Known for its socialist theme, it is c ...
'',
Ritwik Ghatak Ritwik Kumar Ghatak (; 4 November 19256 February 1976) was a noted Indian film director, screenwriter, and playwright. Along with prominent contemporary Bengali filmmakers Satyajit Ray, Tapan Sinha and Mrinal Sen, his cinema is primarily remembe ...
's ''
Bari Theke Paliye ''Bari Theke Paliye'' (English-language title: ''Runaway'' or ''The Runaway'') is a 1958 coming-of-age Bengali film by director Ritwik Ghatak. It stars Parambhattarak Lahiri, Kali Bannerjee, Nripati Chatterjee, Padma Devi, and Gyanesh Mukher ...
'' in 1958,
Satyajit Ray Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian director, screenwriter, documentary filmmaker, author, essayist, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligrapher, and music composer. One of the greatest auteurs of fil ...
's ''
Parash Pathar ''Parash Pathar'' ( bn, পরশ পাথর ''Porosh Pathor''; English: ''The Philosopher's Stone''; French: ''La Pierre Philosophale'') is a 1958 Bengali language Indian fantasy comedy film. It was Satyajit Ray's first film outside of ''The A ...
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Mrinal Sen Mrinal Sen (''Beng.'' মৃণাল সেন; 14 May 1923 – 30 December 2018) was an Indian film director, and screenwriter known for his work primarily in Bengali, and few Hindi and Telugu language films. Regarded as one of the finest Ind ...
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Neel Akasher Neechey ''Neel Akasher Neechey'' (Bengali: নীল আকাশের নীচে ''Nil akasher niche'', "Under the Blue Sky") is a 1958 Bengali language drama film directed by Mrinal Sen and produced by Hemanta Mukherjee, starring Kali Bannerjee, Man ...
'' in 1959,
Shakti Samanta Shakti Samanta (13 January 1926 – 9 April 2009) was an Indian film director and producer, who founded Shakti Films in 1957, which is most known for films such as ''Anand Ashram'' (1977), Anusandhan /'' Barsaat Ki Ek Raat'' (1981), ''anay abhi ...
's ''
Howrah Bridge The Howrah Bridge is a balanced cantilever bridge over the Hooghly River in West Bengal. Commissioned in 1943, the bridge was originally named the New Howrah Bridge, because it replaced a pontoon bridge at the same location linking the cities ...
'' (1958), that featured the famous song
Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu "Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu" () is a song from the 1958 Indian film ''Howrah Bridge''. It was sung by Geeta Dutt, and was picturised on Helen. The song has lyrics by Qamar Jalalabadi and was composed by O.P. Nayyar. The tune at the beginning of th ...
and ''
China Town A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Austra ...
'' (1962) and ''
Amar Prem ''Amar Prem'' () is a 1972 Indian Hindi romantic drama film directed by Shakti Samanta. It is a remake of the Bengali film '' Nishi Padma'' (1970), directed by Arabinda Mukherjee, who wrote screenplay for both the films based on the Bengali s ...
'' (1971), Amar Jeet's 1965 ''
Teen Devian ''Teen Devian'' () is a 1965 Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular ter ...
'' in 1965,
Mrinal Sen Mrinal Sen (''Beng.'' মৃণাল সেন; 14 May 1923 – 30 December 2018) was an Indian film director, and screenwriter known for his work primarily in Bengali, and few Hindi and Telugu language films. Regarded as one of the finest Ind ...
's 1972
National Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate ...
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Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
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Calcutta 71 Calcutta 71 is a 1972 Bengali film directed by noted Indian art film director Mrinal Sen. This film is considered to be the second film of Mrinal Sen's Calcutta trilogy, the others being ''Interview An interview is a structured convers ...
'' and Sen's Calcutta Trilogy its sequel in 1973, '' Padatik'',
Richard Attenborough Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, (; 29 August 192324 August 2014) was an English actor, filmmaker, and entrepreneur. He was the president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and the British Academy of Film and Televisio ...
's 1982
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
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Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
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Goutam Ghose Goutam Ghose (also spelled Gautam Ghosh born 24 July 1950) is an Indian film director, Actor, music director and cinematographer, who works primarily in Bengali cinema. He is the only Indian to have received the "Vittorio Di Sica" Award, Italy ...
's 1984 Hindi film ''
Paar The Paar is a river of Bavaria, Germany, a right tributary of the Danube. For several tens of kilometers it flows parallel to the Lech, at only a few km distance. Near Augsburg, the Paar leaves the Lech valley and turns north-east towards Ingolst ...
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Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of th ...
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Ram Teri Ganga Maili ''Ram Teri Ganga Maili'' () is a 1985 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Raj Kapoor. The film stars Mandakini and Rajiv Kapoor in lead roles. Music director Ravindra Jain received a Filmfare Award for this film. The film ge ...
'' in 1985,
Nicolas Klotz Nicolas Klotz (born 22 June 1954) is a French filmmaker born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine. Filmography *'' Rendez-vous avec Marguerite'' 1983 *''The Bengali Night'' 1988 with Hugh Grant, Shabana Azmi and Soumitra Chatterjee *'' La Nuit s ...
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The Bengali Night ''The Bengali Night'' (french: la Nuit Bengali) is a 1988 semi-autobiographical film based upon the Mircea Eliade 1933 Romanian novel, '' Bengal Nights'', directed by Nicolas Klotz and starring Hugh Grant, Soumitra Chatterjee, Supriya Pathak an ...
'' in 1988,
Roland Joffé Roland Joffé (born 17 November 1945) is a British director and producer of film and television, known for the Academy Award-winning films ''The Killing Fields'' and '' The Mission''. He began his career in television, his early credits includ ...
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English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
film ''
City of Joy ''City of Joy'' (french: La Cité de la joie) is a 1985 novel by Dominique Lapierre. It was adapted as a film by Roland Joffé in 1992. Calcutta is nicknamed "the City of Joy" after this novel, although the slum was based on an area in its twin ...
'' in 1992,
Florian Gallenberger Florian Gallenberger (born 23 February 1972 in Munich) is a German film director and writer. His film '' Quiero ser (I want to be...)'' was awarded the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film in 2001. Career Gallenberger appeared in various ...
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Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
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Shadows of Time ''Shadows of Time'' (german: Schatten der Zeit, Bangla: সময়ের প্রতিচ্ছবি) is a 2004 Bengali language German romance film directed by Florian Gallenberger in his directorial debut. Filmed in Calcutta, India, the ...
'' in 2004,
Mani Ratnam Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam (born 2 June 1956), known professionally as Mani Ratnam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema and few Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films. Ratnam has won six Nat ...
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Yuva ''Yuva'' ( Youth) is an Indian Hindi-language political thriller film directed by Mani Ratnam and released in 2004. The film was simultaneously shot in Tamil as ''Aaytha Ezhuthu'', and it is loosely based on the life story of George Reddy, a ...
'' in 2004,
Pradeep Sarkar Pradeep Sarkar (born 30 April 1955) is a writer and director who works in Bollywood. He began his career with Vinod Chopra Productions, the production company of director and producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Personal life From a young boy lis ...
's 2005 Bollywood film '' Parineeta'',
Subhrajit Mitra Subhrajit Mitra (born 18 January 1976) is a filmmaker from Kolkata, India. He is known for his work in the Bengali film industry. Career Subhrajit Mitra is an Indian filmmaker who works in the Bengali film industry. His 2021 film, ''Avijatri ...
's 2008 Bengali film '' Mon Amour: Shesher Kobita Revisited'',
Mira Nair Mira Nair (born 15 October 1957) is an Indian-American filmmaker based in New York City. Her production company, Mirabai Films, specializes in films for international audiences on Indian society, whether in the economic, social or cultural sphe ...
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Blessy Blessy Ipe Thomas is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works in Malayalam cinema. He has won one National Film Awards, National Film Award and six Kerala State Film Awards for his feature films ''Kaazhcha'' (2004), ''Thanmathra'' (20 ...
's 2008 Malayalam Film '' Calcutta News'',
Surya Sivakumar Saravanan Sivakumar (born 23 July 1975), known by his stage name Suriya, is an Indian actor, producer, television presenter and a Philanthropy, philanthropist. He primarily works in Tamil cinema where he is one of the highest paid actors. He re ...
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Aadhavan ''Aadhavan'' () is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film directed by K. S. Ravikumar and written by Ramesh Khanna. The film stars Suriya and Nayantara, with Vadivelu, Murali, B. Saroja Devi, Rahul Dev, Sayaji Shinde, Anand Babu in ...
'', Imtiaz Ali's 2009 Hindi film '' Love Aaj Kal'',
Abhik Mukhopadhyay Avik Mukhopadhyay is an Indian cinematographer who works in Bengali and Hindi films. He collaborated with eminent directors like Rituparno Ghosh, Aparna Sen, Srijit Mukherji, Kamaleshwar Mukherjee, Anik Dutta, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Shoojit ...
's 2010 Bengali film ''
Ekti Tarar Khonje ''Ekti Tarar Khonje'' is a 2010 Bengali-language film that was directed by Abhik Mukhopadhyay. The film stars Shayan Munshi, Arpita Pal, Rudranil Ghosh, and veteran actor Dhritiman Chatterjee. Dev appeared in a cameo role. Plot It deals with a ...
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Sujoy Ghosh Sujoy Ghosh is an Indian film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter who works in Hindi films. He has directed ''Jhankaar Beats'' (2003), '' Home Delivery: Aapko... Ghar Tak'' (2005), '' Aladin'' (2009), ''Kahaani'' (2012), ''Kahaani 2'' (2 ...
's 2012 Bollywood film ''
Kahaani ''Kahaani'' (; ) is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language thriller film co-written, co-produced and directed by Sujoy Ghosh. It stars Vidya Balan as Vidya Bagchi, a pregnant woman looking for her missing husband in Kolkata during the festival of Durga ...
'',
Anurag Basu Anurag Basu (born 8 May 1974) is an Indian director, screenwriter, actor and producer. He began his directing career in television, moving to feature films in 2002. Basu achieved initial success with his films tackling the themes of passion and ...
's 2012 Hindi film ''
Barfi! ''Barfi!'' is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy drama film directed by Anurag Basu and produced by Ronnie Screwvala and Siddharth Roy Kapur under UTV Motion Pictures. The film stars Ranbir Kapoor as the eponymous lead, alongside P ...
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Riingo Banerjee Riingo Banerjee ( bn, রিঙ্গো ব্যানার্জী) is a noted Indian Bengali film director and score composer. Riingo worked in the advertising industry for 14 years before entering the world of cinema working as a film wr ...
's 2012 Bengali film ''
Na Hannyate ''Na Hannyate''Spelling according tTelegraph (Calcutta)/ref> is a 2012 Indian Bengali-language disaster drama film directed by Riingo Banerjee. The story of the film is inspired by Zhang Ling's novella "The Great Tangshan Earthquake". Cast ...
'', Rana Basu's 2013 Bengali film ''
Namte Namte ''Namte Namte'' (English: Into the Abyss) is a 2013 Bengali film. The film was directed by Rana Basu and produced under the banner of 3 eDots Productions. The film's music was composed by Sidhu. The film was released on 8 February 2013. The fil ...
'', and
Ali Abbas Zafar Ali Abbas Zafar is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter. He is known for directing ''Mere Brother Ki Dulhan'' (2011), ''Gunday'' (2014), '' Sultan'' (2016), ''Tiger Zinda Hai'' (2017) and ''Bharat'' (2019). Personal life Zaf ...
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Gunday ''Gunday'' () is a 2014 Indian Hindi-language action drama film written and directed by Ali Abbas Zafar and produced by Aditya Chopra. The film features Arjun Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, Priyanka Chopra and Irrfan Khan in the lead roles. Set in 197 ...
'' and the 2015 YRF release from director
Dibakar Banerjee Dibakar Banerjee (born 21 June 1969) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer and advertisement-filmmaker known for his work in Hindi films. Banerjee started his career in advertising, being a feature filmmaker, he still continues t ...
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Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! ''Detective Byomkesh Bakshy!'' is a 2015 Indian Hindi-language mystery action thriller film directed by Dibakar Banerjee, and produced by Banerjee and Aditya Chopra. The story is based on the fictional detective Byomkesh Bakshi created by the B ...
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Shoojit sircar Shoojit Sircar (born ) is an Indian filmmaker, director and producer known for his work in Hindi films. He has received several awards, including two National Film Awards and a Filmfare Award from five nominations. Sircar made his directoria ...
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Piku ''Piku'' is a 2015 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film directed by Shoojit Sircar and produced by N. P. Singh, Ronnie Lahiri and Sneha Rajani. It stars Deepika Padukone as the titular protagonist, Amitabh Bachchan and Irrfan Khan, with Mous ...
" also features some scenes on this iconic bridge. The bridge was also featured in
Garth Davis Garth Davis (born 1974) is an Australian television, advertising and film director, best known for directing the film ''Lion'' (2016), and the film ''Mary Magdalene'', written by Helen Edmundson. He earlier directed episodes of the series ''To ...
' Academy Award-nominated 2016 film ''
Lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
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Anvita Dutt Anvita Dutt Guptan (born 20 February 1972) is an Indian dialogue writer, screenplay writer, story writer, lyricist and director of Bollywood films. Early life and background Her father worked with the Indian Air Force (IAF), thus she grew in s ...
's 2022 movie
Qala (film) ''Qala'' () is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language psychological drama film, written and directed by Anvita Dutt. The film is produced by Karnesh Ssharma under Clean Slate Filmz and stars Tripti Dimri, Swastika Mukherjee, and Babil Khan in his film d ...
features some fictional scenes of Howrah Bridge's construction.


See also

*
List of largest cantilever bridges This list of cantilever bridges ranks the world's cantilever bridges by the length of their main span. A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers: structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end. Completed ...
*
List of longest bridges above water in India This is a list of India's bridges longer than , sorted by their full length above water. Bridges See also *List of longest bridges in the world *List of road–rail bridges *List of bridges in India *List of longest bridges in West Bengal ...


References


External links


Official Website of Howrah Bridge, maintained by Calcutta Port TrustPicture of old Howrah Bridge
* {{Howrah topics 1943 establishments in India Bridges completed in 1874 Bridges completed in 1943 Bridges in Kolkata Buildings and structures in Howrah district Cantilever bridges Buildings and structures in Howrah Pontoon bridges Tourist attractions in Howrah Transport in Howrah Transport in Kolkata Bridges in West Bengal