PATNA: A newly built bridge over the Ganga connecting Kachi Dargah in Patna to Bidupur via Raghopur in Vaishali district will be named after former Bihar chief minister and Janata Dal (United) president Nitish Kumar.
Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary made a formal announcement in this regard on Friday. In a post on X, Choudhary said, “The six-lane Kachi Dargah–Raghopur–Bidupur bridge will be known as ‘Nitish Setu’. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate the bridge to the public during his visit on November 21.”
The state government has decided to name the 9.76-km-long main bridge over the Ganga after Nitish Kumar. Choudhary also said that the Prime Minister would inaugurate and lay the foundation stones for several development projects at a public meeting to be held at Rajapakar in Vaishali district.
The inauguration of the six-lane bridge is expected to ease traffic congestion on the Gandhi Setu, which connects Patna to Hajipur in Vaishali district. The first phase of the bridge, connecting Kachi Dargah to Raghopur Diyara, was opened to public traffic on June 23, 2025. The total length of the Kachi Dargah–Bidupur bridge, including approach roads, is 19.76 km.
The announcement to name the bridge after Nitish Kumar is being seen as an attempt to ease tensions between the BJP and JD(U) following the results of the Bihar Legislative Council (MLC) elections. A section of JD(U) leaders had accused the BJP of not extending full cooperation to the party's candidates in the elections.
The JD(U) won only one of the four seats it contested.