Bangladesh's first steel arch bridge takes shape at Kewatkhali, 27 percent complete

Bangladesh's first and largest steel arch bridge, the Kewatkhali bridge over the Brahmaputra river in Mymensingh, is now taking visible shape. Modelled on Australia's Sydney Harbour Bridge, the bridge is already 27 percent complete, at a project cost of Tk 3,263 crore.

According to the Roads and Highways Department (RHD), the main bridge is 1.1 kilometres long, of which 320 metres will be a steel arch. There will be pillars at both ends but none in the middle of the river.

Including approach roads on both sides, the whole project is 6.2 kilometres long. It will have six lanes, a 551-metre road overpass, a 240-metre railway overpass, a toll plaza, a rest house, a watch tower and a park, with a separate lane for slow-moving vehicles.

The work was held up at the start by land acquisition and the relocation of utilities including electricity poles and gas lines, and the contractor could not be handed the full worksite on time. After the change of government, administrative and technical complications slowed the work further for several months. Those obstacles have now largely been overcome and construction is in full swing.

Project director Md Didarul Alam Tarafdar said: 'A lot of time was spent at the start on land acquisition and utility relocation, so the expected progress could not be achieved. Most of those complications have now been overcome. The project deadline has been extended to June 2028.' He said the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the project's international financier, is monitoring progress and international standards are being followed for workers' safety.

The Kewatkhali bridge project was approved at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on 24 August 2021. Main construction began in September 2023. The work was initially due to finish in December 2026, but complications made that impossible; the target is now June 2028.

Transport drivers hope the bridge will ease congestion in Mymensingh city's Patgudam and Shambhuganj areas. Bus driver Hashem Uddin said vehicles from several districts now have to enter the city over the Patgudam bridge, causing jams at busy times, and that the Kewatkhali bridge will create an alternative route, saving drivers and passengers time and suffering.

Another bus driver, Ruhul Kabir, said the new bridge will make travel to the capital and other districts easier, let goods vehicles move faster, and benefit trade and commerce.

Mymensingh City Corporation administrator Md Rokonuzzaman Rokon said the bridge will transform the city's communications, especially travel for people in the Brahmaputra's char areas, and will create new opportunities for urban expansion, industrialization, trade and investment around it, while reducing congestion.

Deputy Commissioner Md Saifur Rahman said the Kewatkhali bridge is a long-standing expectation of the region's people, land acquisition for the project has been completed, and the work is expected to finish within the extended deadline.

Mymensingh-4 MP Abu Wahab Akanda Wahid said construction progress is being monitored regularly, the contractor is being pressed to finish quickly, and necessary cooperation is being provided.