Tripura: Newly Built Bridge Collapses in Kanchanpur, Corruption Alleged

AGARTALA: Government projects in Tripura, especially in major departments such as the Public Works Department (PWD), Drinking Water & Sanitation (DWS), and the Agartala Smart City project, are reeling under serious problems of a lack of oversight and widespread corruption.

There are reports that contractor agencies are being compelled to give a 10-20% commission as bribes to local tender mafias, political brokers, and corrupt officials, including the engineering personnel. Consequently, the quality of projects has greatly declined, and the majority of projects are not being finished on schedule.

Even with clear regulations that require transparency, the majority of project locations lack signboards that provide critical information like project expenditure, executing agency name, time frame, and date of completion. Such signboards are compulsory according to government rules to facilitate public accountability. But contractors and government officials are intentionally disregarding this regulation, and no steps are being taken against them, further facilitating unchecked corruption.

The effect of this neglect is increasingly coming to light. One of the most stark examples of shoddy construction for lack of supervision was recently seen in Dasda, Kanchanpur, where a recently constructed concrete bridge collapsed within days of its construction. The bridge, built at a huge cost, was supposed to last the region for years but failed just about as soon as it was completed because of poor-quality materials and lack of supervision.

Rather than taking the responsible persons to task, the PWD Engineering Division at Kanchanpur is said to be trying to hush up the accident. No government investigation has been initiated to ascertain if government norms in construction were maintained or if the construction was as per government directives. Instead, the authorities are said to be transferring blame and playing a guilt game, again underscoring the systemic, deep-seated problems.

Local citizens and opposition parties have over and over raised issues regarding lack of accountability among the government departments in Tripala. They've demanded strict watch and legal prosecution of corrupt employees and contractors. Yet, till date, there have been no tangible actions towards rectifying those problems.

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