Editorial
Bridge that impedes Buriganga navigability
The issue demands prompt investigation and addressing
THE report that vessels laden with cargoes cannot pass under the Third Buriganga Bridge seemingly due to low vertical clearance of the bridge from the water level of the river should be a matter of serious concern for all. To all appearances, it is a telltale sign of some compromise made somewhere at the implementation phase of the bridge. Though no one has so far owned up to the apparent fault in the construction of the bridge, the fact remains that transportation of goods through the river route is getting severely constrained at the bridge point.
The measurement made by the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) hydrographers, which shows that the height of the bridge from the water level is two metres lower than it should be, has been questioned by the project engineers. But their point of discord is concerned more with the authority of BIWTA people to measure the height than with the merit of the measurement of the bridge height made by the latter. The users of the river route, the people of the locality and others concerned are hardly interested in such kind of arguments over jurisdictional or authority-related controversies between the Roads and Highways (R&H) department and the BIWTA. They want simple answer to the glaringly visible shortcomings of the bridge as it hampers transportation of river-going vessels passing under it.
Since the bridge in question is conceived as part of the Dhaka Circular Waterway Project connecting the Buriganga, Turag, Balu and Sitalakhya rivers surrounding the capital city, whose aim is to reduce the severe traffic congestion within the city, the navigability of the rivers all the year round is a crucial issue for the success of the project. But if the bridges on these rivers themselves turn out to be the main hindrance to the movement of the river traffic, then the very utility of the project will come under serious question. Such fear is not quite unfounded, as some officials of the said waterway project have complained of similar 'vertical clearance-related problems' in the case of half a dozen other bridges!
If the apprehensions voiced by the officials as reported prove true, it will be a serious blow to the envisaged Circular Waterway Project as well as to the prospect of solving the city's traffic problem.
The problem as reported about the Third Buriganga Bridge, therefore, demands serious attention from the government. The government should carry out a thorough investigation into the matter to bring out the truth.
Since this is a foreign-funded project, we need to be cautious about the use of the project fund and its implementation. Any fault or lapse found in the design of the project must be immediately pointed out and corrected without delay. Otherwise it is not only the money that risks being wasted, the full potential of the bridge as a facilitator of trade and commerce could also remain underutilised.
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