Kolkata: The state Irrigation department has taken up a project to construct 100 medium and small concrete bridges over rivulets.
The state government has identified 936 bridges those need to be replaced with new ones. It came to the notice of senior officials of the department that the existing concrete bridges are in dilapidated condition and the wooden ones are too narrow for even an ambulance to pass.
Saumen Mahapatra, the state Irrigation minister, said: "Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has introduced many ambulances in the state. Hence, the bridges should be wide enough so that at least an ambulance can pass through it. At the same time, it will also help in better transportation of agricultural produce."
In the first phase, a total of 100 bridges will be constructed in four districts — Jhargram, Birbhum, Bankura and West Midnapore. The project will be developed with state's Infrastructure Stop Gap Funding (ISGF) of Rs 537 crore.
Soil testing at 100 places has been done and the work for construction of the same is expected to start from December onwards.
The minister said: "We are starting with four districts and 100 bridges will be constructed in the first phase. Gradually, all the identified 936 bridges will be replaced with the new ones."
It may be mentioned that most of the bridges are in the rural part of the state. Once construction of the bridges is complete, people will no longer have to cover a long distance to reach a
particular point.
The state Irrigation department has taken many other steps for the benefit of the people and at the same time, steps have been taken to ensure that people do not suffer during the monsoons. Several steps have also been taken to check flood in different parts of the state.