HT Correspondent
GOSSAIGAON, Jan 2: The collapse of a dilapidated wooden bridge over the Haraputa river at Abed Ali Ghat under the 3 No Srirampur BTC constituency in Kokrajhar district has once again highlighted what residents describe as years of administrative neglect during the previous UPPL-led BTC government. Four passengers were injured after an e-rickshaw plunged into the river when the ageing bridge gave way while connecting 2 No Bhomrabil and Haraputa villages.
Soon after the incident, leaders of the BPF-led Council, including Srirampur constituency TCLC president and advocate Mokhlesur Rahman, Bhomrabil VCDC president Anwar Hussain Khan and several party workers, visited the spot and interacted with the affected residents.
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Local people strongly criticised the former UPPL-led BTC administration, alleging “criminal indifference” to repeated warnings about the dangerous condition of at least five wooden bridges over the Haraputa river in the Srirampur area, a neglected region along the Assam–Bengal border. They claimed that despite several accidents and repeated public representations, no steps were taken for permanent construction or even basic repairs.
Residents also recalled that during the 2020 by-election to the Gossaigaon Assembly constituency, several top leaders, including Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, former Chief Executive Member Pramod Boro and former MCLA Sajal Kumar Singh had publicly promised to replace the dilapidated wooden bridges with permanent structures. According to locals, those assurances remained confined to election platforms, while the UPPL-led BTC government failed to act.
Addressing the issue, TCLC president Mokhlesur Rahman said the bridge was vital for daily movement of villagers across the constituency. He stated that despite repeated appeals, the deteriorating condition of the bridge was ignored, forcing residents to risk their lives daily. He added that patients, students and daily commuters were compelled to travel nearly five kilometres extra due to the unsafe crossing.
Rahman said the latest incident, in which an e-rickshaw was completely damaged and four passengers seriously injured was a direct result of prolonged official apathy. With traffic through the bridge now completely disrupted, he assured that immediate steps would be taken for temporary restoration and that initiatives would be launched to ensure permanent construction of key bridges, including the Bhomrabil Bazar–Serfanguri connecting bridge, Goladangi Chandighat bridge, Majm Dewani Ghat bridge and several bridges in the Jamduar constituency.
