Bridge construction cancelled over land problems in Dumuria

S M Aminul Islam, Khulna

Although the project period had ended, the contractor had not started the work. But this time the project is being canceled due to land complications. In this situation, there is uncertainty in the implementation of the new bridge construction project on the Bhadra River in Chuknagar of Dumuria Upazila in the district.
When the old bridge turned risky, the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) took the project there at a cost of about Tk 6 crore.
It is known that a bridge was built in the 80s on the Bhadra River on the border of Dumuria Upazila of Khulna District and Keshabpur Upazila of Jashore District. The construction of the bridge created a rapport among the people of Khulna, Jashore and Satkhira districts. At that time, it was the only road between Khulna and Satkhira. Thousands of small and large vehicles, freight vehicles, and general pedestrians from different parts of the country including the three districts use the bridge. At times cargoes from the Bhomra Land Port in Satkhira used the route. Moreover, after the construction of the old bridge, the Chuknagar area got developed.
While visiting on the spot, it was found that cracks have appeared in various places of the bridge recently. Casting is crumbling. The inner rods are out. There is an iron sheet for temporary movement. Vehicles and people are moving dangerously in this bad condition.
Akbar Hossain, a tea seller, and Latif Sheikh, a car driver, in the area, said, “This bridge was built 43-44 years ago. People of this region including school-college students use the bridge constantly. Every day 15,000 small and big vehicles and freight vehicles move. But the fragile condition of the bridge has made the movement of people dangerous. Besides, the vehicles are moving by avoiding the broken side, which is causing a long tailback.”
According to LGED sources, the LGED took the initiative to rebuild the bridge under the Supporting Rural Bridge project to reduce the suffering and traffic risk. The cost of construction of the 60.6-meter-long bridge at Chainage 23,077 meters on the Mikshimil R&H-Sholgatia Chuknagar GC Road was estimated at Tk 5,91,64,446.429 crore. Contractor SA ZT (JV) of Khulna’s Dakkhin Tutpara got the job in the tender. The work order was issued to the contractor on July 5, 2022. According to the work order, the deadline for the completion of the project was August 17 this year. However, the contractor had not started the work even though the project period had expired.
“Everyone was joyous by the news of the construction of the bridge. But the news of the cancellation left everyone disappointed and angry. However, we demand the construction of the bridge,” said Karimul Islam and Swapan Roy of Chuknagar Bazar.
Sub-Assistant Engineer of the Dumuria LGED office Md. Ferdaus said, “The work order for the construction of the bridge is being canceled due to the land complications. A letter has already been sent to Khulna LGED for cancellation.”
AKM Anisuzzaman, the executive engineer of Khulna LGED, said, “The construction of the bridge was given to the contractor. Khulna-5 Constituency (Dumuria-Fultala) MP Narayan Chandra Chanda recommended shifting the bridge to the side when the contractor went to work. Now there is a land complication, which has not been settled.” Regarding the cancellation of the work order, he said, the matter is under process.
Khulna-5 Constituency (Dumuria-Fultala) MP Narayan Chandra Chanda said, “The bridge is necessary. If the bridge is constructed and the road is widened, the journey to the Kalna Bridge will be reduced by 40 km for the people of Satkhira, Dumuria, and Shahapur regions. But a civil case has been filed there claiming ownership of the land. That is why it has been asked to construct the bridge a little away.”
Regarding the cancellation, he said, “Nothing can be done if it is canceled. It cannot be forced there if no one allows it.” However, he claimed that the development will be disrupted if the bridge is not built.