JS body for realizing compensation for Jamuna bridge crack

A parliamentary committee on Sunday strongly recommended realizing compensation by legal means from the foreign company concerned for the crack on the Jamuna multipurpose bridge that is so vital in integrating the country’s eastern and north-northwestern parts.
The Parliamentary Stan-ding Committee on Com-munications Ministry in its meeting identified the reasons for not realizing compensation by determining liability of Hundai company despite the detection of the break that has developed in the Jamuna Bridge “due to construction fault”.
The lawmakers decided to identify those officers who were involved in lowering the “contractual security term” from 10 years to two years for the bridge, rated world’s eleventh longest.
They asked the authorities concerned to inform them about follow-up action at the next meeting. Briefing newsmen at the Media Centre of Parliament chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications Sheikh Mojibur Rahman said, “The company which constructed the Jamuna multipurpose bridge cannot avoid the liability for the crack developed on the bridge as the company is both designer and constructor of the bridge.”
He said they came to learn that the company cut down the term of bearing liability from 10 years to two years, and they would thoroughly examine the matter. The standing-committee chairman said the meeting also discussed the proposed Padma bridge and decided that design of this second gigantic bridge should be checked up by Bangladeshi engineers so that no problem takes place like that of the Jamuna Bridge. It also stressed proper river training and proper selection of contractors for the bridge.
The lawmakers also suggested restoring the near-dead Faridpur railway junction and extending the railway line up to the proposed Padma bridge site so that stones which possibly will have to be imported from a neighboring country for constructing the bridge can be brought smoothly as it would cut the carrying cost. The meeting formed a 3-member parliamentary subcommittee headed by Omar Faruq Chowdhury to investigate allegations of irregularities against Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) and to remove the rot. The two other members are Nazrul Islam Manju and Apu Ukil.
In an important development the meeting decided that “there is no legality” of the subcommittee formed by the Ministry for development of the BRTA. It also discussed ways of minimizing the nagging traffic congestion in the capital city and suggested introducing more double-decker and 52-seated buses, reducing the huge number of minibuses, withdrawing old buses, improving public buses which are now about 5,500 in number and construction of flyovers.

Courtesy of The Bangladesh Today