As many as 24 lampposts on Saturday afternoon were lit up on a trial basis at Padma Bridge, which is scheduled to be inaugurated on June 25.
Padma Bridge Executive Engineer Dewan Md Abdul Quader confirmed the matter.
He said: “A total of 24 lampposts between span 12 and 19 were illuminated experimentally from 5:30pm to 6:45pm.”
There are 415 electric lampposts on the the 6.1km-long bridge.
Of them, 328 lampposts have been set up on the main bridge, 46 on the viaduct at the Jajira side and 41 on the viaduct at the Mawa side.
Besides, another 200 electric lights are located on the connecting road on both sides.
Focus BanglaThe lampposts of the bridge will be lit with power supply from Shariatpur Palli Bidyut Samiti and Munshiganj Palli Bidyut Samiti.
According to the bridge department, the work of installing the first lamppost on the viaduct of the bridge at the Mawa end of Munshiganj started on November 25, 2021.
The work of installing lampposts on the main bridge was completed on April 18 this year.
The Bangladesh Bridge Authority (BBA) has already formed 18 preparatory committees and sub-committees to celebrate the completion of the mega project.
Commemorative stamps and inaugural envelopes will be issued ahead of the occasion.
According to officials, the construction of the main bridge will be completed by May as 98% of work on it has already been done. However, the overall progress of the project is 93.5% since work on river training has been delayed.
The work of carpeting on the bridge has been completed. Except for railing and road markings on the bridge, all the other works have already been completed.
The installation of the railing on the bridge will also be done before the inauguration.
However, 12.3km railings will be installed gradually on both sides of the 6.15km-long-bridge on three-foot-high walls. The power sub-station edifice will be completed by next year.
Besides, river training work will continue for another year. About 9% of the river training work under the project is still incomplete.
The construction of the bridge began in November 2015 with the aim of connecting the country’s south-western region with the capital via road and rail.
The project cost rose to Tk30,193 crore in 2021 after several revisions. Rail tracks will be set up on the lower deck of the two-storey Padma Bridge at a cost of some Tk40,000 crore.
The Dhaka-Mawa-Bhanga Expressway leading to the bridge has been constructed at Tk11,000 crore.
To develop connectivity with the road and rail network to the south-western regions of the country, the government’s expenditure is over Tk80,000 crore to date.