Two Nearby Bridges Built Over Canal Without Connecting Roads, Wasting Tk 11 Crore

Staff Correspondent | April 18, 2025

A completely unnecessary and unplanned bridge is being constructed over a canal in Titas Upazila, Cumilla, at a cost of Tk 5.12 crore, leaving local residents astonished. They have questioned the competence of the interim government led by Chief Advisor Dr. Yunus.

On-site observation revealed that one side of the bridge lacks any connecting road, while the other side has a dilapidated rural dirt road. Surrounding the under-construction bridge are hundreds of bighas of arable land. Despite the significant expenditure, the bridge will provide no benefit to the local community.

Residents are frustrated by the construction of such an unnecessary bridge over a small canal at great cost, and they have strongly criticized the Yunus government for such unwarranted projects. Allegations have been raised that this unneeded construction is being used to financially benefit local contractors and others involved in unethical ways.

Additionally, about 700 meters away, another girder bridge is being constructed over the same canal at a cost of approximately Tk 5.5 crore. Locals believe that such unnecessary and unplanned projects by the Yunus government are wasting state resources and facilitating corruption. However, the concerned authorities have claimed that connecting roads will be constructed after the bridge is completed.

Upazila Engineer Shahidul Islam stated that the bridge work is expected to be completed by June this year, and roads will be constructed afterward.

It was learned that a girder bridge, 45 meters long and 9 meters wide, is being constructed over the canal adjacent to South Shri Narayankandi village in Balrampur Union at a cost of Tk 5.12 crore. The project includes a budget for constructing 110 meters of connecting roads on both sides of the bridge. The work is being implemented by a company named Max Infrastructural Limited.

On visiting the site, it was observed that there is about 1.5 kilometers of rural dirt road in Narayankandi village. At the entrance of the village, there is an old, risky bridge over the canal. After 1.5 kilometers of dirt road, a girder bridge is being constructed in front of Southpara Kuwaiti Jame Mosque. However, construction of this bridge is currently halted. West of the under-construction bridge, beyond the mosque, there is no connecting road. To the east, the area consists of vast agricultural fields. Building a bridge in such a location will serve no practical purpose.

Balrampur village spans nearly 2 kilometers of agricultural land. Without roads, about 60% of the bridge construction has already been completed. However, residents are shocked that another girder bridge is being constructed approximately 700 meters away over the same canal at a cost of Tk 5.5 crore. This unplanned construction has sparked widespread criticism.

When asked about the construction of two adjacent bridges over the same canal, Upazila Engineer Shahidul Islam stated that the bridges are being built for the benefit of the local community.