60-metre-long bridge over Kharia River was built spending Tk 9.04 crore, no use to the people due to the lack of approach roads

Md. Mijanur Rahman Akanda: The bridge built at a cost of 9 crore taka in Phulpur, Mymensingh, has been unemployed for a year due to the lack of a connecting road.
Although the bridge was built at a cost of 9 crore 4 lakh 24 thousand taka over the Kharia River between Sutarkandi and Chhoto Chilagai villages of Bhaitkandi Union of the upazila, it is of no use to the people due to the lack of a connecting road. Although the construction of such a bridge in a remote rural area reflects the aspirations of the people, the bridge has become unusable due to the lack of a connecting road. It is known that the construction of this 85-meter-long bridge under the Program for Supporting Rural Bridges project through the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) jointly funded by the Government of Bangladesh and the World Bank began in May 2023 and was completed in October 2024. The on-site inspection showed that although the construction of the bridge has been completed, it is not possible for people to move on foot, let alone by any vehicle, as the connecting road has not been built yet. Since the bridge deck is about 10 feet above the flat ground, the local people are trying to walk on the bridge by throwing some bags of soil. It is not possible for any elderly or sick person to cross this bridge. Due to the lack of connecting road, the people have to travel 5 kilometers via Dwarkapur and Bhaitkandi to transport goods. It is worth mentioning that a month ago, an old woman from Shyampur village of the upazila died while crossing the river through the low water after failing to climb the bridge. Mobarak Hossain of Chhota Chila Gai village of Bhaitkandi union said, my mother`s leg was broken while climbing this bridge. Due to this, she has been lying in bed for 4 months.
Shamsul Haque of Sutarkandi village said, there was once a ferry pier at this place. At that time, people used to cross the river with their goods by boat. But after the construction of the bridge, the boat was stopped, and the suffering has increased. This place is still known as Nilganj Ghat.
Sultan Hamid, who lives near the bridge, said that since vehicles cannot pass through the bridge, they spend extra money on marketing their agricultural products by taking many roads. Since it is not possible to bring and take agricultural products through the bridge, there is a difference of 2 to 3 hundred taka per maund in the price of raw products in the markets on both sides.
Mufti Mohammad Jahangir Alam, Imam of Nilganjghat Jame Mosque, said that from Sutarkandi to Bahadurpur on the other side of the river, one has to travel 4 kilometers to go to Bhaitkandi Union Parishad. In addition, students from schools, madrasas and other educational institutions on both sides of the river face extreme hardship in their transportation. When talking to Phulpur Upazila Engineer Jahangir Hossain about the bridge, he said that since there is private land on the connecting road, it is not possible to fill the road with soil due to the owner`s objection. Steps are being taken to resolve the issue.