Bridge costing Tk 340m stands idle due to lack of service road

The bridge has not seen a single day of traffic since its construction

Between two stretches of farmland stands a bridge that cost Tk 340 million. It was finished, but due to the complications of land acquisition, no service road leads to it. In the two years since it was finished, the structure has never brought any benefit to the residents of Manikganj.

Contractor firm Orient Trading and Builders and Kohinoor Enterprise were chosen to construct a bridge over the Kaliganga River in Baikunthapur in Ghior Upazila when the government floated a tender notice in 2018, according to the Local Government Engineering Department.

The construction was scheduled to end in February 2020, as per the tender, but the deadline was extended twice. Finally, the deadline was pushed to February 2022, but the builders missed that timeframe as well. The 365-metre-long bridge cost more than Tk 346 million.

The bridge was technically finished two years ago, but the contractors have not finished the service roads on either end due to tangled land acquisition issues, said LGED Upazila Engineer Mohammed Ashraful Islam Bhuiyan.

People related to the bridge construction said 4.96 decimals of land are needed to build the 630-metre service road on both banks of the river.

Land owners say they were repeatedly trying to get compensation for their land from the respective government body. The local government, on the other hand, said the land acquisition trouble would be resolved and service road construction would begin soon.

Due to the lack of service roads, people from more than 50 villages on both banks have been crossing the river on dinghy boats as before. They are frustrated at the authorities for failing to build the service roads and have demanded it be completed soon so the bridge can open to traffic.

”The owners of acquired land and structures didn’t get their compensation in two years. Hence, they are not leaving their land. They have been visiting the government office for compensation for the last two years,” said Habibur Rahman from Baliabadha village.

“Since the bridge was built, not a single vehicle has used it for a single day. This bridge was built to fulfil public demand but locals are deprived of the bridge’s utility due to lack of service roads,” a frustrated Habibur said.

While travelling to the district town, locals have to travel an additional 15 km since the service roads are not there, he said. “Once the bridge is open to traffic, it will ease the connectivity of Ghior Upazila with the district. We demand the government pay the land owners their compensation and build the service roads soon.”

“People from 40-50 villages will be able to travel easily once the service roads to the bridge over Kaliganga are constructed. They can sell their agricultural products easily,” said Mamun Hossain from Baikunthapur.

Md Masud Mia, manager of the contractor firm, said the land owners had prevented them from constructing the roads. “We were compelled to halt the construction work. LGED isn’t providing us with the acquired land. We will need four to five months to complete the construction once the land acquisition is complete.”

The land acquisition process was at its final stage, said LGED Upazila Engineer Mohammed Ashraful Islam Bhuiyan. “We’ll distribute the cheques among the affected landowners and the contractor will start their work,” he said.

The deputy commissioner will distribute the cheques for compensation to the land owners soon, said Mamunur Rashid, senior assistant commissioner of the District Revenue Deputy Collector office.