Four years on, Achabal Bridge awaits completion
Anantnag: Despite the passage of around four years the construction of a vital bridge in Tailwani area of Achabal hamlet in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district is awaiting completion.
The slow pace of work on the bridge has left the people high and dry.
The residents of the area said the Roads and Building (R&B) Department had started execution of work on the project four year ago.
“But in the last four years the department has erected only three pillars of the bridge,” the locals said.
The locals said the completion of work on the bridge would connect at least two dozen villages to the rest of the district.
“But it is unfortunate that not more than 30 percent of the work has been completed in four years. Ironically, the work was suspended from last year,” said Waris Ahmad, a local resident.
The locals said the government should not start execution of work on projects if sufficient funds are not available with the government.
“We approached the concerned authorities a number of times and we were told that the work was halted due to paucity of funds,” said Aijaz Ahmad, another local.
He said that makeshift bridges were made several times but they were washed away with heavy rains.
Locals said people of around two dozen villages are suffering as they are forced to take long routes to reach their destinations.
“School going children, patients and elderly persons bear the brunt of slow pace of work on bridge. unfortunately, no attention is being given to it by the government,” he said.
The locals urged the higher ups to look into the matter at an earliest and complete project so that people of around two dozen villages will not suffer for long.
The Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE) R&B Ishfaq Ahmad said that work had been allotted to the contractor and fabrication of the superstructure was going on. “The bridge will be completed within the current financial year only,” he assured.
Jahangeer Ganaie
