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Local Member of Parliament, Advocate Moslem Uddin, inaugurated the construction of a paved bridge approximately three years ago, aimed at spanning the Rangamatia Canal in Radhakanai Union, Phulbaria Upazila of Mymensingh. However, despite a projected completion period of one year, only 40% of the bridge's construction has been accomplished.
This delay has severely impacted the nine villages reliant on this bridge, leaving the local populace in distress, questioning the timeline for the completion of this crucial infrastructure.
The bridge, stretching 60 meters with RCC girder construction, connects Phulbaria-Trishal Dhurdhuria of Radhakanai Union across the Rangamatia Canal, linking Canai Beel to the Akhalia River, situated approximately 100 meters north of the river.
Assigned to construct this bridge was the contracting company M/s Islam Brothers from Dhaka. The initial deadline for the completion of the Rangamatia Canal Bridge was December 20, 2021.
Regrettably, despite the passage of nearly three years, a significant portion of the bridge remains incomplete. Saddam Rahman, the manager of the contracting company, expressed uncertainty about the project's completion, citing an estimated cost of around Tk 3 crore or 40 lakhs.
Per the contractual agreement, construction commenced on January 7, 2021, and was scheduled to conclude by December 20 of the same year. However, the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) has issued nine reminders to the contractor due to the delay, with each correspondence resulting in delayed responses from the contractor. According to the latest communication, completion is now projected for December of the current year.
The ramifications of this delay are keenly felt by the local populace, consisting of thousands of individuals from Khalipura, Radhakanai, Dhurdhuria, Jayada, Muthbari, Chalimpur, Chaudhar, Chagalchindera, and Palashtali. These villagers heavily rely on this thoroughfare connecting Chagalchira and Dhurdhuria, utilizing battery-operated mixers, rickshaws, and cars for their daily commute
Apart from this, many students of poet Kazi Nazrul Islam at the University of Trishal travel through here. The demand for the construction of a paved bridge over the Rangamatia Canal was long-standing.
The people of some villages were happy as the construction of the bridge started after a long time. But as the work was not completed at the specified time, their suffering increased twice.
Local people complain that almost three years have passed since the construction of the bridge, but half of the work has not been done yet. Construction workers stopped work 10–11 days before Eid-ul-Azha. Since then, the work has stopped. The bridge's base girder rods are rusting and decaying.
It can be seen on the ground that the work on the RCC girder bridge under construction on the Rangamatia canal at Chaudar Chagalchindara at the last border of Phulbaria and Radhakanai Unions has been stopped.
There are no contractors or construction workers. The base girder rods of the under-construction bridge are rusting and decaying. Installation of iron shuttering poles for the top slab of a section on the eastern side of the bridge. The brick-stone blocks (small slabs) placed under the shuttering poles have been given.
A few bundles of rods lying on the side of the bridge are rusting. A small bamboo ramp has been built on the side for people to travel on so that they can move from one end to another. Battery-powered autobikes and vans drop passengers on the west side of the under-construction bridge. Many times, small boats are used to cross the canal, though it is deemed to be very dangerous.
Abul Kalam of Chagalchinda village said, "While constructing the bridge, the contracting company has caused extreme suffering to the people of the village, which is unimaginable."
Olil Mia, a shopkeeper in Brijpar, said that the people of nine villages have been suffering for almost three years due to the negligence of the contractor.Saddam Rahman, the manager of the contracting company, said, "I cannot finish the work on the bridge due to a lack of funds. I cannot say when the work will be completed.
About the work of the bridge, LGED's upazila engineer Mahbub Murshed said, "The construction of the bridge is almost 60 percent complete. According to the contract, the work is scheduled to be completed on December 20, 2021. The contractor has repeatedly extended the time to complete the construction work. We have also written to them nine times to complete the work quickly.
Messenger/Kalam/Shahin
