It was built as a joint project of the Government of Kerala, the Greater Cochin Development Authority and Gammon India.

On reaching, he prepared a project document for the development of Kochi port and informed it to the Governor of Madras, Lord Wellington.

In three stages, an estuary 450 feet wide and three and a half miles long was formed connecting the deep sea and Cochin Bay and an area of 780 acres was developed from the lake using soil and the new man made island was named Wellington Island.

Following this, the old Mattanchery bridge was built across the backwater under the supervision of Robert Bristow to connect Willington island with Mattancherry.

It was built in such a way that the middle section was lifted up with a pulley and an iron rope so that the ships coming and going to the port would not be obstructed.