Bridge construction halted in Kalihati Due to PIO-contractor conflict

The construction of a bridge over a canal has been halted for a long time due to a conflict between the Project Implementation Officer (PIO) and the contractor in Kalihati, Tangail. People of several villages are suffering as the work has not been completed even after the stipulated time has passed. Locals are forced to cross the canal using risky bamboo bridges.

According to local sources, an initiative was taken to construct a bridge over a canal in Savar village of Kokdahara union in Kalihati upazila in the 2019-20 fiscal year. Although construction work started at that time, the contractor abandoned the work after doing some work. The tender was later cancelled.

Later, in the 2023-24 fiscal year, the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief allocated Tk 4.1 million for the construction of a bridge over the canal. A contractor named Bulbul Enterprise got the construction work of the bridge through a new tender. However, locals complain that the construction work has been stopped for a long time without being completed after starting the work.

Since the bridge has not been built, the locals are crossing the canal by making bamboo bridges themselves and taking risks. The most affected are school and college students, the elderly and the sick. In addition, when a villager dies, the relatives also have to suffer greatly while taking the body to the cemetery.

Abdul Bashet, UP member of Kokdohra Union Parishad, said that there has been a problem between the PIO and the contractor regarding the construction of the bridge over the Savar Canal for a long time. Although work has started in two phases, the construction of the bridge has not been completed yet. When he went to the PIO regarding this matter, he mentioned the contractor. When he contacted the contractor again, he was asked to go to the PIO. He demanded that the construction of the bridge be completed quickly. He tried to contact the owner of the contractor, Bulbul Enterprise, but he could not be found.

In this regard, he said on the phone to Kalihati Upazila Project Implementation Officer (PIO) Tariqul Islam, "We have to apply for information. I know everything, I will not comment." If you want to know, contact the Tangail District Relief and Rehabilitation Officer (DRO).

Since the construction of the bridge has been stopped for a long time, the locals have demanded that the matter be investigated quickly, those responsible identified and the construction work completed.