Shivamogga, 14 July  

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Monday inaugurated India's second-longest cable-stayed Sigandur bridge here.

While senior BJP leaders attended the event, none from the state cabinet attended it.

According to officials, the bridge constructed across Sharavathi backwaters between Ambaragodlu-Kalasavalli in Sagara taluk of this district has been built at a cost of Rs 472 crore.

This bridge is expected to significantly reduce the distance from Sagara to the villages around Sigandur, a place which is known for the Chowdeshwari temple.

The event was attended by Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, Senior BJP leader BS Yediyurappa, among others.

However, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah or any of his ministers did not attend the event.

Recently, Siddaramaiah had urged Gadkari to postpone the inauguration of the bridge and foundation stone laying ceremony of infrastructure projects at Sagara taluk in Shivamogga on 14 July, stating that he was not informed in advance.

Citing his scheduled visit to Indi taluk in Vijayapura district, the CM in a letter to Gadkari had said, it would have been more appropriate for MoRTH to have consulted with the state government before scheduling such a programme, and requested him to instruct the officials in this regard.

Noting that an inauguration programme of various developmental schemes is already scheduled under his Chairmanship in Indi taluka of Vijayapura district on the same day, he said it would have been more appropriate for MoRTH to have consulted with the state government before scheduling the state-level programmes.