The bridges are symbols of communication, union and development, but what an irony if they are not working properly!
This is the case of the rickety wooden bridge adjacent to the Bayarghata Bazar over the Sonai river under North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal. This Bridge can accommodate only pedestrians and two wheelers, it is in such a bad condition that it can’t take the weight of motor cars, or any four wheelers. The wooden pillars that are holding the bridge are slowly chipping away. The present Panchayat has insufficient funds and can only repair the top part of the bridge - to renovate the bottom pillars that hold the bridge, they will need more finance.
The locals are demanding a concrete bridge in the area. They have to travel another 10-15 kilometres extra to reach hospitals and markets because of the poor condition of the bridge. It creates a lot of hurdles specially for the patients and elderly population. There are instances of people falling from the bridge too, sometimes these cases are fatal. This 10 year old wooden bridge caters to the villagers of three Village Panchayats, to about 30,000 people.
People are agitated now and are appealing to the Public Works Departments to make a concrete bridge.
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