Residents want damaged bridges on Kunar River reconstructed

ASADABAD (Pajhwok): Several residents of eastern Kunar province are complaining about the destruction of bridges on the Kunar River in districts of Shiltan, Sarkan, and Nurgal, and are urging their reconstruction.

In several districts of Kunar, the previous government constructed bridges for the convenience of people’s movement. But some of these bridges have been destroyed and others are at risk of collapse.

Mohammad Ismail, a resident of Pashad area in Sarkan district, said that a concrete bridge was built in their area at a cost of millions of afghanis about four years ago, but now most of it had collapsed, and people were unable to use it for crossing.

He said, “The Pashad bridge, which was built during the previous government, at a cost of millions of afghanis, has largely collapsed and is no longer functional, which has led to many problems for us.”

He added that due to the bridge’s destruction, they are now forced to take a longer route to reach the provincial capital, Asadabad, which wastes several hours of their time and causes delays in their daily tasks.

Similarly, Nasrat Khan, a tribal leader from the Zayri Baba area in Nurgal district, said that the bridge over Kunar River in their area was also on the verge of collapse.

He added, “In the Zayri Baba area, the concrete bridge over the Kunar River was initially partially damaged, but the government did not take steps to rebuild it, and now it is on the verge of collapse.”

The residents of Kunar are urging the government to start rebuilding the destroyed bridges because water level decreases in the river during winter season, providing a good opportunity for reconstruction of the bridges.

On the other hand, local officials in Kunar say they have paid special attention to the reconstruction of destroyed bridges.

Qari Qudratullah Maaz, head of Kunar’s public works department, said that the budget for reconstruction of damaged bridge in Zayri Baba, built during the previous government, has been approved, and work will begin soon.

He added, “This year, according to our request, the budget for the repair of the damaged concrete bridge over the Kunar River in Zayri Baba has been approved, and it is expected that work will begin soon, which will help resolve many of the people’s problems.”

He also added that in Shiltan district, a reinforcement bridge has been built in place of the collapsed concrete bridge, and they are working to rebuild other damaged bridges and construct new ones.

However, during the previous government, several concrete bridges were built over the Kunar River with hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding from US forces.

Among them, bridges in Zayri Baba, Shalton, and Pashad have been destroyed due to rising water levels in the river, rendering them useless for local population.

sa/ma