News
No bridge over troubled waters for these residents
View(s):-
- W.H. Lionel
-
- V. A. K. Upul
-
- Farmers in Liyangastota have to walk around 27km to the Barawekumbuka fair, to sell their goods. If the bridge was complete, they would only have to travel 2km on foot.
-
- The narrow and dilapidated bridge that is currently in use.
-
- This bridge was to be built over the Walawe River to allow motorists to travel from Liyangastota to Thaligala.
-
- Residents expressed their concerns and frustrations about the construction work, which has been neglected for months.
-
- A waste of public resources and tax money
-
- The abandoned construction work of the Thaligala-Liyangastota bridge in Ambalantota.
The construction work of the Thaligala-Liyangastota bridge in Ambalantota has been abandoned due to the negligence of the responsible authorities.
Residents expressed their concerns about the neglected construction work as the steel cables that had been allocated for the bridge, have begun to deteriorate.
This bridge was to be built over the Walawe River to allow motorists to travel from Liyangastota to Thaligala.
The bridge that area residents are currently using is narrow and dilapidated. A large number of people, including schoolchildren, face difficulties because of the hazardous bridge and the negligence of the relevant authorities.
The State Development and Construction Corporation began the bridge construction work, under the supervision of the Road Development Authority. Rs 270 million Rupees was allocated by the previous Government for the construction work.
A majority of the area’s villagers are farmers and they have to walk about 27km to the Barawekumbuka fair. If the bridge was complete, they would only have to travel 2km on foot.
People who wish to visit the Ridiyagama Safari Park and the Ridiyagama Zoo, the largest zoo in Asia, also have to travel a long distance via the Southern Expressway. If they too had access to the bridge, they would not have to travel such a distance to visit the safari park and the zoo.
“The bridge we are using right now is not in a good condition, and using it is quite dangerous. We had asked the public authorities many times for a new bridge. The previous Government started constructing it, but for many months the construction work did not take place,” Area resident W.H. Liyanage said.
“Even the steel cables to be used for the construction are now gathering rust. This is a waste of public resources and we want the authorities to finish building this bridge immediately,” Mr. Liyanage added.
“Some people who used the current bridge, had been injured because of the state it is in. We suspect that someone could even be killed when using this bridge,” another area resident, V. A. K. Upul, said.
Mr. Upul also said many farmers in the area, use this bridge with the greatest difficulty, to transport their harvest to the Barawekumbuka fair.
“Regardless of which Government began the construction work, the tax money has been allocated for the project. We want the authorities to finish building the new bridge soon, without neglecting the work for years,” he added.
Pic and Story by Rahul Samantha Hettiarachchi