NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate to the nation the Aunta-Simaria project featuring a six-lane, 1.8 km-long bridge over the Ganga River in Bihar on August 22.
The link will reduce travel distance by about 100 km for heavy vehicles ferrying between north and south Bihar and provide direct connectivity between Mokama in Patna District and Begusarai. Modi had laid the foundation in October 2017. The project is part of National Highway 31. The bridge has been constructed parallel to the existing two-lane rail-cum-road bridge “Rajendra Setu”, which is almost seven decades old and needs repair.
Anil Chaudhary, member, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), said, “The Rajendra Setu has only two lanes, and the one corridor is closed because of repair work. Only one lane is in use, and it is for light motor vehicles. So, traffic jams are regular. The new bridge will resolve this issue.”
Heavy vehicles plying on the new bridge will have to travel 100 km less between Begusarai, Supaul, Madhubani, and Araria in North Bihar and Patna, Seikhpura, Nawada, and Lakhisarai in South Bihar.
The link will also provide better connectivity to the famous pilgrimage place of Simaria Dham, which is also the birthplace of the renowned poet, the late Ramdhari Singh Dinkar.
“Overall, the bridge will prove beneficial from an economic viewpoint, boost connectivity to an important cultural centre and enhance ease of travel for people of the region,” Chaudhary said.
The bridge is the country’s widest extradosed bridge—a hybrid structure that combines features of a cable-stayed and girder bridge—designed with a single segmental structure.
Project part of NH 31
The link will reduce travel distance by about 100 km for heavy vehicles ferrying between north and south Bihar and provide direct connectivity between Mokama in Patna District and Begusarai. Modi had laid the foundation in October 2017. The project is part of National Highway 31.