Bridge without approach roads causes suffering

A bridge built over a local river around ten months ago does not have approach roads on either sides, causing immense suffering to people of nearby villages in Katulee union of Sadar upazila.

 As there are no approach roads, finding no alternative, villagers make bamboo structures on both sides of the bridge and use it to go to the union parishad and nearby Torabganj bazar.

People of Kakrail, Kharjana, Bausat and Chowbaria villages use the bridge amid risk of accident every day.  

Especially schoolchildren and elderly people suffer a lot during the rainy season as they often slipped from the bamboo structure while crossing the bridge, said villagers.   

Shakhawat Hossain, a member of Katulee union parishad (UP), said Local Government and Engineering Department (LGED) completed construction of the 45-meter-long and 2.2-metre-wide concrete bridge on a branch of the Dhaleswari river at Kakrail village at a cost of Tk 36 lakh in January this year.

But local people cannot use the bridge literally as it does not have approach roads on either side, said the UP member.

Nayeb Ali, a resident of Kakrail village, said as the bridge does not have any approach roads, it is causing immense sufferings to villagers.

Mohammad Aitk, 13, a student of local Shikderpara Madrasa, said it is tough to cross the bridge with his bicycle.

Nasima Akter, a housewife of Kharjana village, said they urged the authorities concerned to take immediate steps to build the approach roads on both sides of the bridge considering the sufferings of local people, especially school kids.

Iqbal Hossain Miah, chairman of Katulee UP, said the upazila parishad has already allocated 10 tonnes of rice for construction of the approach roads.

Upazila LGED Engineer Faruk Ahmed said they will complete construction of the approach roads on both sides of the bridge in December this year.