Clash between workers of two sub-contractors has hit the construction work of Bogibeel bridge for the third consecutive day on Friday.
According to reports, two groups of workers under two sub-contractors have been engaged in the super-structure work of the 4.94-km long bridge.
While one group was working in the river’s North bank (Dhemaji side), the other group was engaged in the South bank (Dibrugarh side). The dispute arose after workers from the North bank reportedly carried out construction activities on the other side violating an earlier agreement.
According to source, there was a mutual understanding between the two sub-contractors that each party will do the concreting work on 20 upper deck slabs each on the bridge’s superstructure. But the North bank contractor disregarding the agreement went on to complete concreting work of 30 deck slabs.
“There was a mutual understanding between the two sub-contractors that each party will do the concreting work on 20 upper deck slabs each on the bridge superstructure. But the North bank contractor disregarding the agreement went on to complete concreting work of 30 deck slabs. On Wednesday morning a clash broke out between the two parties resulting in complete halt of work. We are hopeful of resolving the dispute soon,” a railway official said.
Meanwhile, the railway authority has reported the matter to the Dibrugarh district administration as well as the Union Minister of State for Railways and the state government.
Dibrugarh SP Gautam Borah along with other district officials on Thursday went to the bridge site and held a discussion with the workers and asked them to resume work.
The Bogibeel bridge which has been projected as India’s longest rail-cum-road bridge is expected to be commissioned in October this year.
More than a decade and a half ago, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had inaugurated the construction work of the bridge on April 21, 2002.
Having already missed several deadlines over the years, the multi-crore bridge has earned the unflattering tag of the slowest moving infrastructure project of the region.