Tripura demands widening of bridges on NH

From a correspondent

Agartala, Oct 26: The Tripura government has demanded the Centre for widening of 21 bridges along the Agartala-Subroom tiol Highway for easy vehicular movement.

Badal Choudhury, Minister for Public Works Department, in a letter to the Union Minister for Surface Transport Nitin Gadkari said widening of the bridges is necessary as heavy vehicles will ply on this road after the bridge on the river Fenny gets completed. It is expected that trucks carrying goods from Chittagong port in Bangladesh will ply on this road.

The minister said the tiol Highway is 10 meter wide with one and half meter footpath on both the sides. But the bridges are only 7.5 to 8 meter wide that may obstruct free flow of traffic.

As per norms, the width of the bridge is supposed to be wider than the tiol highway. So the minister proposed to widen the bridge to at least 16 meter to ensure a free flow of traffic.

The minister also proposed to set up divider on some portions of the tiol Highway that passes through populated areas like Shantir Bazaar, Jolaibari, Udaipur, Manu Bazaar, Amtali Bazaar and Bishramgunj.