Our Correspondent :
The Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Railway Bridge is now visible clearly on the Jamuna River. The first steel structures span sits on pillars 47 and 48 of the dual-gauge railway bridge, six more spans will appear soon. Not only the installation of the span, but other works are also going on at a fast pace. Of the 50 pillars of the bridge, eight spans are fully ready to be connected, with a few more on the way.
If this bridge is opened with a length of 4.8 km, it will be the beginning of a new horizon in railway communication in the northern region of the country indeed. So the people of this region are excited. The residents of both sides of Jamuna are happy too.
Visiting the Bridge project area on the ground, it is found that huge construction work is
going on day and night (Sirajganj and Tangail).
Three hundred meters upstream of the Bangabandhu (Jamuna) Bridge, the various machines including heavy instruments have been installed in rows in the river that are running continuously. Moreover, at the eastern end of the bridge, the first span sits covering pillars 47 and 48. Local and foreign engineers and laborers are spending hectic time with numerous works.
The authority concerned said that the piling of the pillars of the bridge started in March last year. About 45 percent of the work has been completed so far. Out of 50 pillars, works of 34 are ongoing. They also added this bridge is being built with a combination of iron and concrete of new technology.
Due to the use of such technology in the steel structure’s modern span, it does not need painting separately. It will be sustainable too. Even in the next 100 years, the structure of the bridge will not get rust. The color of the girder will also change with the change of weather, the bridge authority also added.
Tanvirul Islam, Chief Engineer of Bangabandhu Rail Bridge Project said that there were many limitations before running trains. Earlier we could run only 38 trains. Now 88 trains will be able to run after this railway bridge is opened. He said, earlier one train had to stop to pass another one. But as it has a double lane, more than one train can run at the same time which will trigger the speed in the field of our communication sector.
He also added that the length of the Bangabandhu Railway Bridge is 4.8 km. The cost of the project is estimated to be more than Tk 16,780.95 crore. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2024. The concerned are moving forward with the work quickly intending to finish on time.
