The span has been placed upon a temporary bearing. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will formally inaugurate it when she returns homeObaidul also noted that so far 47.5% of the project has been completed. That, however, is about 7% behind the original schedule.Speaking at the briefing, Padma Multipurpose Bridge Project (PMBP) Director Shafiqul Islam said: “The span has been placed upon a temporary bearing. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will formally inaugurate it when she returns home.” According to PMBP sources, the first span of the superstructure reached the construction yard from China on August 8 last year. It was set to be installed at the Mawa point of Munshiganj by December. But strong current at that part of the river delayed the process, forcing the authorities to revise the plan and begin installation of the spans from Janjira point instead. It was also reported that the original design would be changed for proper construction of the bridge because of disputed soil level of the riverbed and strong current. Secretary Anwarul Islam, however, refuted that claim during on Saturday's briefing, saying: “The reports about changes being made in the design are incorrect. The bridge is being built following the original plan.”
Also Read- Padma Bridge at a glance
Once completed, the Padma Bridge will stand over the 42 pillars, including two transition pillars on the two landward ends. These pillars will bear the load of 41 spans, each 150m in length, to connect the 6.15-kilometre-long bridge. It will be a two-level steel truss bridge, with a single-track railway on the lower deck level and a four-lane highway for motor vehicles on the upper deck. Project officials said the piling works to mount seven more pillars at Janjira point has already finished. They are currently working on the installation of 16 other pillars. The construction work for the main structure of the bridge had kicked-off in December 2015. The estimated total project cost, revised thrice since the approval of the project in 2007, now stands at Tk28,793 crores. More than Tk13,000 crores of that have already been spent. Around 3,000 people, including 800 foreign nationals, are currently involved in Padma Bridge’s construction work. Apart from connecting Bangladesh’s south-west to the northern and eastern regions, the bridge will also function as part of the proposed Asian Highway route. The government says that the country’s GDP growth will see a 1.2 percent increase after the bridge becomes operational.
