Nation's longest rail-road bridge may miss deadline again

Delaying development

India’s longest rail-road bridge on the Brahmaputra in upper Assam might miss the deadline once again. 

The Bogibeel Bridge is unlikely to be completed before 2018, officials at the project site told Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu who visited the site in Dibrugarh district on Saturday.

Earlier, the Centre had fixed 2017 as the deadline for completion of the project. The project has missed several deadlines in the past as well. Prabhu expressed dissatisfaction over this and said that the government will not spare anyone responsible for the delay. The minister told the media that the Centre will enquire into the facts and ensure earliest completion of the bridge.

Ironically, the railway authorities failed to give any reason for the delay. Moreover, they couldn't give the exact time of completion of the project.

The Bogibeel Bridge is a ray of hope for the people of northeast, which would benefit them immensely in the future. The people are waiting anxiously for the completion of the project.  

The foundation stone for beginning the project work was laid by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on April 21, 2002. 

The project was commissioned in 1998-99 and so far, the project cost stands at a whopping Rs 5,000 crore. The 4.94 km bridge, stated to be the lifeline of the northeast, will facilitate connectivity between northern and southern banks of the Brahmaputra in the eastern region of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. 

It was one of the main projects under the Assam accord signed between the All Assam Students Union and the Centre.

Prabhu also dedicated four projects to the nation on Saturday at Dibrugarh town railway station. The projects are: Renovated Dibrugarh town station, new station building at Jorhat town, Wi-Fi connectivity to passengers at Guwahati station and reverse osmosis (RO) plant at Guwahati station.