A promised bridge on Naboganga river still remains elusive to villagers

JHENIDAH, 8 Sept: Thousands of people of some villages under Porahati union in Jhenidah Sadar upazila and Udaypur village of Jhenidah municipality have long been suffering severely for absence of a bridge at Udaypur-Baroikhali ghat over the Naboganga River.
Banker Md. Al-Amin of the locality said the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the grave of Advocate Matiar Rahman, Jhenidah district unit General Secretary of Bangladesh Awami League on August 7 in 1996 at Udaypur village and promised to take up a bridge project over the Nagoganga in a public meeting near the ghat. However, the government is yet to implement any project the bridge at the ghat."
Everyday thousands of people from Baroikhali, Stagapur, Beledanga and Madhupur villages under Porahati union, pass over the Nabaganga River at Udaypur-Baroikhali ghat as it is the main entrance for them to the district town, said Nurzahan Begum (55) residing near the ghat at Udaypur village.
Sometimes people coming to the ghat from distant places by different vehicles become bound to get back as they fail to cross the river here, middle-aged Nurzahan added.
A teacher of Udaypur Motiar Rahman Memorial Secondary School Md. Daud Hossain said there is no bridge in the middle of Udaypur and Baroikhali villages. More than one hundred students come to the school crossing the sako from Baroikhali and other villages on the other side of the river. Students suffer severely when they cross the river by rafts of banana trees as the bamboo sako made by the local people is broken again and again by the strong current during the rainy season.
Mostafa (42) of Baroikhali village said, "While my nephew Tumpa (10) was passing through the Naboganga River at the ghat last year, his raft capsized, and he died after drowing there."
Besides, many other local people told this correspondent the sako over the river at Udaypur-Baroikhali ghat is to be made two times a year with an expenditure of over Tk 0.01 million including, bamboos, rope wire and labour cost.
Jhenidah Local Government and Engineering Department Executive Engineer Md. Rakibul Hasan told the FE, "The bridge project was left untaken earlier as we did not know about it. However, at present it has seriously been taken; the preliminary work has already been completed, and it is now under process to go to the LGED headquarter for more actions to be taken by the higher authority."