Authorities have started the reconstruction of Fateh Ali Bridge over the Karatoya River at a cost of Tk20 crore with an aim to reconnect four upazilas with Bogra city.
The construction work began on Wednesday, five years after it was declared abandoned. The bridge will make life easier for traders in the area as well, say local people.
Md Asaduzzaman, executive engineer of Bogra Roads and Highways Department, told Dhaka Tribune that Bogra Sadar constituency lawmaker Ragebul Ahsan Ripu will lay the foundation stone to the bridge on May 22. The construction is scheduled to begin immediately and the bridge is expected to be opened to traffic in May next year.
RHD sources said the bridge was first constructed in 1962 at a cost of Tk20 lakh. The 65-metre-long and 6-metre-wide bridge was damaged during the 1971 Liberation War.
Over 1.6 million people commute through the route regularly to and from Sariakandi, Sonatala, Gabtali and Dhunat upazilas. Besides, local people used to transport their produce through this bridge as well. But, due to the absence of the bridge, their life came to halt.
The railings on both sides have been broken since 1971. The authorities banned vehicular movement on the bridge in 2018. In the meantime, people in the area had to cross an alternative route that is five kilometers longer. Moreover, a narrow bridge was creating heavy traffic on the alternative route as well.
The design for the new bridge was submitted to the ministry in 2021 and it was approved last year. The same year, the government allocated Tk22 crore for the construction of the bridge. Later, it was revised and brought down to Tk19.83 crore.
The new bridge will be 70 metres long and 12.3 metres in width. It will have a pavement on both sides while the approach road will be 7.3 metres in width.