Bogibeel to be Asia’s second largest bridge

NP NEWS 24 ONLINE- Bogibeel, India’s longest rail-cum-road bridge connecting Dibrugarh in Assam to Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh to improve logistical support for armed force.

The bridge, which has been constructed by the railways, is 4.94 km long and 32 metres above the water level of the Brahmaputra. It will be the second largest bridge in Asia with three-lane roads on top and a double-line railway track below.

The motive of constructing the bridge is to improvise to give logistical support to the armed forces along the border in Arunachal Pradesh as India shares nearly a 4,000 km border with China.

The then prime minister, HD Deve Gowda laid the foundation stone of the bridge during his tenure between 1997-2002.The project, has missed several deadlines, was supposed to be completed in June 2017 but got delayed.

The project also includes the development of a trans-Arunachal highway on the north bank of the Brahmaputra and new road and rail links over the mighty river and its major tributaries.

The bridge will significantly decrease the journey time from Guwahati to Delhi. Currently, a train journey via Guwahati takes 37 hours. With the bridge in place, the journey between Dibrugarh and Delhi will be shorter by three hours.

In a previous report, Northeast Frontier Railways, PRO, Nipen Bhattacharya quoted that, “This bridge would bring socio-economic developments to the region. Moreover, it will shorten the distance of route between North Assam and South Assam. The transportation to states like Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur would be more convenient.”

Now that the bridge is completely constructed, it will be inaugurated by prime minister Narendra Modi on 25^th December.