SABROOM (SOUTH TRIPURA), Dec 23 - The Feni bridge connecting Tripura�s Sabroom subdivision with the Ramgarh district of Bangladesh is likely to be inaugurated on January 26 next year.
Around 95 per cent construction works, including the approach road, have been completed on both sides. The construction firm is now giving the finishing touches to the strategic bridge.
The National Highways Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) is scheduled to take over the bridge by December 31. In order to meet the date of commissioning, the construction firm has worked round the clock on the 1.8-km bridge and approach road.
The bridge works would have complete now if there was no pandemic, said an engineer of the construction firm here today. �Due to COVID-19, most of the skilled workers went back to their respective homes, delaying the Rs 82.57-crore project which is being constantly monitored by the Prime Minister�s Office,� he said.
Despite the loss of time, the bridge will be ready for service in a few days, he said, adding that the entire bridge structure is built on 12 pillars. The bridge capacity stands at 380 tonnes.
Meanwhile, local MLA Sankar Roy stated that the Feni bridge would bring about a major change to the State as it would become the gateway to the South East Asian countries through the Chittagong port in Bangladesh.
Roy pointed out that the Chittagong port is only 76 km from Sabroom town, which means that the travel time from the bridge to the Chittagong port will be one-and-a-half hours.
�The distance between Haldia (West Bengal) and Guwahati is 1,141 km, while the distance between Guwahati and Tripura is only 575 km. Days are not far off when North Eastern States will import goods through Sabroom due to the distance factor,� he added.
Roy said that funds to the tune of Rs 90.60 crore for setting up an Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Sabroom have been approved. �The Government expects the trade volume at the Sabroom ICP to be around Rs 2,000 crore per year. It will not only create jobs, but also bring revenue for the State,� he said.
The foundation stone of a Special Economic Zone has already been laid at Paschim Jalefa in the vicinity of the Feni bridge. �The dream of making Sabroom a logistics hub is nearing as some key projects are in the pipeline. It will have a major impact on the economy of Tripura,� the Sabroom legislator added.
