Finally, foundation stone of Bhuntar bridge laid

An approach road to the existing British era truss bridge was washed away in the 1995 floods

Our Correspondent

Kullu, Updated At : 07:38 AM Oct 20, 2024 IST

The bailey bridge at Bhuntar in Kullu.

The foundation stone of the Bhuntar bridge was finally laid today after 29 years when an approach road to the existing British era truss bridge was washed away in the 1995 floods. A bailey bridge constructed as a stop-gap arrangement in its place is still open for the vehicles. The heavy traffic on the bailey bridge was suspended since February.

**Only light vehicles are allowed to pass through the bridge.**

The abutment of the bailey bridge was damaged during a disaster on July 10 last year. It was repaired after 20 days. The bridge tilted slightly due to the movement of heavy vehicles beyond its capacity. Now, the bailey bridge has been mounted on a concrete bridge. The bridge got damaged many times earlier too. Amounts running into crores was spent on its repairs.

A double lane paved bridge was proposed to be constructed to replace the Bhuntar bailey bridge, but the matter remained confined to papers. Earlier, there was a dispute related to the construction of the bridge between the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Public Works Department (PWD). The NHAI claimed to have transferred the bridge to the PWD while the latter maintained that the funds for the construction of the new bridge would be provided by the Central government.

The NHAI authorities had earlier stated that the old design bridge had become unusable due to scouring of embankments because of floods. They said another design had been prepared to construct a 50-metre bridge. The Public Works Department (PWD) authorities stated that an arch bridge would replace the bailey bridge. The authorities said the construction work would be completed by next summer.

Residents have been demanding a wider bridge for a long time. The bridge is the lifeline for residents of Parla Bhuntar and the Parbati valley. Vehicles going from Bhuntar town towards Kullu, Manikaran, Parla Bhuntar and Gadsa valley cross this bridge which witnesses a lot of traffic. The Bhuntar vegetable marketing yard is also next to the bridge. Farmers of the Parbati valley ferry their agricultural produce to the market through this bridge. Due to this, heavy vehicles have to travel at least 10 km extra through Bajaura to reach Bhuntar town and vice-versa.

Pedestrians also have to travel at least 2 km on foot from the Bhuntar bus stand to catch buses from Hathithan and Traihan Chowk near Parla Bhuntar. Small vehicles are allowed to pass through the bridge. Frequent traffic jams are common on the bridge as vehicles from one side can cross it at a time.