Key Features
1. Name: Officially renamed Rabindra Setu in 1965, after the Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, though commonly called Howrah Bridge.
2. Length: 705 meters (2,313 feet).
3. Width: 71 feet, with two pedestrian walkways (15 feet wide each).
4. Type: Suspension-type balanced cantilever bridge.
5. Materials Used: Made of steel, primarily Tata Steel. It used about 26,500 tons of steel.
6. Year of Completion: 1943.
7. Design: Designed by Rendell, Palmer & Tritton, a British engineering firm.
8. Construction: Carried out by the Braithwaite, Burn & Jessop Construction Company.
Significance
1. Traffic: One of the busiest bridges in the world, handling over 100,000 vehicles and countless pedestrians daily.
2. Cultural Icon: Featured in various films, literature, and photographs as a symbol of Kolkata.
3. Engineering Feat: Unique as it does not have any nuts and bolts; it is riveted entirely.
History
Initially proposed in 1862, but the current structure was commissioned in 1935.
It replaced a pontoon bridge that could not handle increasing traffic and water current challenges.
