STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: Call it departments' lethargy or contractors' negligence, the pace at which the works of various projects go on in Assam takes its toll on the State's exchequer and development. Believe it or not, it's a fact that a 150-metre-long bridge that was started 17 years ago is still to be completed.
The tale of this bridge in Raha LAC (Legislative Assembly Constituency) started way back in 2003 since when its foundation stones were laid a number of times. The 150-metre bridge is over the Kopili River connecting Kachuaparghat and Gaspara. The then Congress MLA (departed now) laid its foundation stone in 2003. The contractor started the work of the bridge in 2005, only to abandon it in 2007 – leaving bulk of the work to be done.
The department concerned (PWD) left the work of the bridge unattended till 2011. It was only in 2012 that local MLA Pijush Hazarika took steps to redesign the bridge from concrete structure to a steel fabricated one, and laid its foundation stone afresh in 2013 with an enhanced Budget. As usual, construction work of the bridge started in the traditional laidback attitude (lahe lahe). With the work of this bridge stuck in the time warp yet again, the affected villagers kept complaining to the authorities concerned. Finally, a team of PWD officers visited the bridge site in 2017 and assured the villagers that the bridge would be completed by 2019. However, even now around 40 per cent works of the bridge is still to be done.
When asked on the reasons behind such an inordinate delay in the construction of the bridge, sources in the State PWD said that the project of the bridge had been taken in 2003 under the Chief Minister's Special Fund. However, since the project could not be completed then, in 2012 it had to be taken up with the SOPD (State's Owned Priority Development) fund. They said that the transfer of the project from one head to another head took a lot of time. They also said that contractors' negligence has also added to the delay of the work. "Now we hope to complete the bridge only after the floods," a source in the department said.
The villagers in the area say that the only mode of communication for them to Nagaon town is boat that doesn't ferry people after 6 pm. In emergency cases if they have to go to Nagaon town, they have to follow a roundabout way traversing an extra 50 km via Amsoi.
If a 150-metre bridge cannot be completed in long 17 years, one will have strong reasons to believe that something has gone seriously awry in the department (PWD) – in its supervision and taking action against erring contractors.
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