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A bridge constructed at a cost of Tk 6.0 million at Dhopachharhi Union in Chandanaish upazila of Chittagong district is on the verge of collapse just about two months after it was built.
The construction of the 60-ft bridge on Dhopachharhi Canal was completed at the end of May in an attempt to ease the sufferings of the people of the area.
But huge cracks surfaced on it within the next three weeks, reports bdnews24.com.
The local MP was supposed to inaugurate it on Jun 15, but that did not happen because of the cracks which made the bridge unsafe for use.
The contractor, however, has blamed flash floods triggered by the heavy rain of Jun 13 for the cracks and the near-collapse condition of the bridge, built under a disaster management ministry project.
bdnews24.com found the middle of the bridge sagging while there were huge cracks all around. Soil that made the approach-way on both sides of the bridge had also been washed away.
People were using wooden planks to get on the bridge and walk on foot to the other side.
The Dhopachharhi Canal is situated at Chhapachharhi on the eight-mile-long Kumari Road. Nearly 10,000 people who live at Dhopachharhi Union have long been using bridges made of wooden planks to cross it.
An upset Union Council Member, Abdul Jabbar, said the new bridge would have made a huge difference to the livelihood and commute of the locals.
He said most of the people in the area are farmers. They suffer immensely when they cross the canal with their produce during the rainy season.
Engineer Zahirul Islam, the upazila project implementation official under the disaster management ministry, said, “No mistakes were made during the construction work.”
However, Chandanaish upazila executive officer Md Lutfur Rahman has formed a four-member committee to look into the bridge.