An old demand for a new bridge over Karnaphuli

Boalkhali Upazila is just 10 kilometres from Chittagong city.

For people living at Boalkhali, it should take just over 30 minutes to reach the city, but some days it takes three hours. They blame the Kalurghat Bridge -- a narrow, 88-year old structure connecting the banks of Karnaphuli River.

Over decades, building a new bridge has been the main pre-election pledge handed to Boalkhali locals.

Replacing the British-era rail bridge was on the promise agenda before the elections of 1996 and 2001, locals say. Two more elections have since been held but the people of Boalkhali never got their new bridge.

Moin Uddin Khan Badal and Abu Sufian

With the general election just over a week away, politicians from all sides are again promising Boalkhali voters, that is Chittagong-8 voters, a new bridge over Karnaphuli.

Moin Uddin Khan Badal, the current MP, said he will make sure there is a new bridge within one year if he is re-elected. If he fails, he will resign, said the leader of the Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal of the ruling Grand Alliance.

Abu Sufian, his rival candidate from the BNP, said making the new bridge is his first priority.

The old rail bridge was built in 1930 and opened for all vehicles in 1958. In the 90s, more and more vehicles were using the bridge because of lesser trains travelling the Chittagong-Dohazari route.

Even more vehicles were coming its way after a cyclone broke down the Shah Amanat Bridge in 1991. Over the years, the bridge has undergone many repair works but still remains a shaky structure.

Vehicles coming in from both sides cannot cross the bridge at the same time. One group waits on the bank as the other passes – the cause behind long delays in crossing the bridge.  

“The government has allotted millions for infrastructure development in Chittagong. But the old demand for a four-lane bridge at Kalurghat is still unmet. For two decades, governments have failed to make this bridge a reality,” said Mustafa Nayeem, a journalist based in the port city.

The Boalkhali-Kalurghat Bridge Implementation Committee has been pushing for their demand, holding meetings and human chain protests over time to time.

“Boalkhali is so close to the city. But even then, the residents who work in Chittagong have to rent homes in the city,” said committee convener Abdul Momin.

“We’ll have a rail route from Chittagong to Cox’s Bazar. The tracks will pass Boalkhali. Building the new bridge here is very important. It’ll reduce the pressure on the city and contribute to the development of Boalkhali.”  

Nine candidates will be going head-to-head to represent Chittagong-8 when polls open on Dec 30. The parliamentary seat of currently 476,000 voters was represented in parliament by BNP MPs from 1991 to 2008.

In the 9th general election, JSD’s Badal won the seat for the Grand Alliance, competing with the ruling Awami League’s ‘boat’ symbol.