Of the 41 spans of the bridge, 31 have already been installed. Mawa Kumarbhog Yard is fully prepared to install three spans in the remaining 10 hours. Seven more spans are also being prepared.
However, the work of installing the span has been stopped but other works of the bridge are still going on, the concerned said.
The month-long floods have already inundated large areas in the north and central parts of the country. The rivers of the country including Padma, Meghna and Jamuna are flowing at the danger level.
Padma Bridge Executive Engineer Dewan. Abdul Quader said, the Padma is flowing at Bhagyakul Point above the danger level of 6 cm. According to statistics, the highest water level during the 1998 floods. At Bhagyakul Point, the water level was 8 meters 50 centimeters. Now there is 6 meters 6 centimeters. The danger level here is 6 meters 30 centimeters. In other words, in 1996, the Padma was 1 meter 20 centimeters above the danger line.
“The speed of the current near the Padma bridge is now 3.8 to 4.25 meters per second. This is also a new record. The strong current of the current stays here. But not so much before. ”
This engineer said, now the rest of the span is placed in the main Padma. Where there are twelve month currents. There is no risk of navigability crisis here. All the spans in the area where the navigability crisis was at risk have settled. So the challenge is less. The spans will be put in place in a really quick time to control the current.
"Now the installation of the span has stopped due to the current, but other works are going on."
The engineer of Padma Bridge further said that so far the actual progress of the main bridge is 69 percent. Financial progress is 7 percent. The contract value of the main bridge is 12 thousand 133.39 crore rupees. So far 10 thousand 523.06 crore has been spent. The actual progress of river management work in 14 km is 83 percent and the financial progress is 59.8 percent. The contract value of the river management work is Tk 8,606.61 crore and so far Tk 5,212.01 crore has been spent.
“The work of 12 and a half kilometers of the connecting road on both sides of the bridge has been completed. The main bridge has 41 spans, all of which come from Mawa. Of these, 31 spans have been installed so that 4,650 meters are visible. There are 10 more spans to be placed at the end of Mawa.
He said 750 out of 2,918 roadway slabs of the main bridge and 1,256 out of 2,959 railway slabs have been installed. And in Mawa and Jazira 'Viaduct', 181 out of 484 super girders have been installed. Overall, the overall progress of the Padma Bridge project so far is 70.50 percent.
The last 31st span was on June 10. The bridge is visible at 4,650 meters.
Engineer Dewan said. Abdul Quader further said that the work of Padma bridge has not stopped even in the case of coronavirus. Work is going on in compliance with the hygiene rules. You don't have to get that much speed to place the remaining 10 spans on the edge of Mawa.
The 6.15 km long bridge will have two floors, over which there will be roads and railways at the bottom. The distance from one pole to another of the bridge is about 150 meters. Each pole is capable of carrying 50,000 tons of weight. Construction of the Padma Bridge began in December 2014 with its own funding from the Government of Bangladesh. The construction of the main bridge is being done by the Chinese contractor China Major Bridge Engineering Company (MBEC) and the river management is being done by the Chinese Sino Hydro Corporation.