Commuters suffer on decrepit Netrakona-Mohanganj road
Dilapidated bailey bridge makes the journey risky
A bus moves with difficulty on potholed Netrakona-Mohonganj road. Right, an awfully dilapidated bailey bridge at Thakurkona on the road poses serious risk for passengers. Photo: STAR
The 28-kilometre Netrakona-Mohanganj road connecting Netrakona with the rest of the country has become awfully dilapidated, causing an untold suffering to about 24 lakh people in eight upazilas of Netrakona and Sunamganj districts. Besides, condition of the bailey bridge over Kangsa River at Thakurkona is pitiable as portions of the railings, pillars and floors of the bridge have broken. Abul Kashem, a driver who drives a passenger bus on the road, said, "We have to pass the bridge carefully and very slowly. The bridge shakes when vehicles ply it. We have to cross the road risking the lives of passengers and ours." Expressing dismay at the condition of the road, Nurunnabi, a commuter, said passengers receive injuries frequently as vehicles shake constantly throughout the journey. Sometimes drivers lose control for bad shape of the road. The government sanctioned Tk 9.70 crore for the repair and renovation works of the road and a contractor was appointed for executing the repair works two years ago, said Netrakona Roads and Highways Department (RHD) office sources. The works were not, however, completed even after two years due to lack of sincerity and honesty of the concerned contractor who stopped the works only after one fourth of the work was done violating the conditions of the work orders. The RHD hung a signboard in front of the approach road giving cautionary signal for the passengers and the drivers of the vehicles to drive slowly and carefully, as the baily bridge is vulnerable. Meanwhile, the government allocated Tk 4.53cr for repair and reconstruction of the bridge and a contractor had been assigned by the authority to start the work. The contractor could not, however, start the work due to the reason unknown. When contacted, the executive engineer of the Netrakona RHD Mohammad Nurul Amin said the repair works of the road could not be completed due to negligence of the contractor. Decision will be taken soon about the restart of the repair work, he said, adding that Ashraf Ali Khasru, the local MP, stopped the work three months ago. Local MP Ashraf Ali Khasru said he had to stop the work for its poor construction as he found on a spot visit at the work site. They are going to take steps to start the work again after a decision with the RHD, the MP added. Feroj Miah, the manager of Shamim Construction that was given the work, said the work was temporarily stopped. They hope they will get order to start the work again soon, he added. On the start of maintenance works of the bailey bridge, Nurul Amin said the allocated money has yet to reach to the concerned bank account. The RHD put up a signboard in front of the approach road giving cautionary signal, as the bailey bridge is vulnerable.
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