Government Proposes Two New Bridges on Ganga in Bihar

The Nitish government, on Thursday, in an attempt to ease some burden on the dilapidated Gandhi Setu, commonly known as Ganga Bridge, has mooted the idea of having two more bridges on the holy river and has directed the concerned officials to come up with an initial report.

The two new proposed bridges are to be built between Chhapra-Ara and Bakhtiarpur-Mahnar, state Road Construction Minister Nand Kishore Yadav said.

Talking to the reporters on Thursday, Yadav said that problems with the Gandhi Setu were just too many. "By the time one crisis is taken care of, another one pops up. As as result of this, traffic on the bridge continues to be a nightmare for the commuters," he said.

"The only way to have a long-term solution is to close the bridge for some time until a complete repair job is carried out," the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said.

Yadav further said that repair work on National Highways passing through Bihar would begin within a month. "Punitive actions have been initiated against three contractors responsible for maintaining the highways while the contract has been given to new contractors," he said.

The minister further said that the state would be spending over Rs. 3,500 crore on the upgrade of state and National Highways totaling more than 6,000 kilometers.

Earlier, Yadav, along with Urban Development Minister Ashwini Kumar Choubey, laid the foundation stone of a pedestrian bridge outside Patna Junction.