10-yrs on, bridge on Pulwama’s Romeshi rivulet awaits completion

Pulwama, July 26: The vital bridge on the Romeshi rivulet at Rahmoo village in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district has been under construction for the past 10 years.
Residents of Rahmoo, a village located approximately 8 kilometers from the district headquarters and falling under Rajpora Tehsil, reported that the bridge was damaged during the 2014 floods.
This bridge is essential for connecting Pulwama with Budgam, including historic places like Pakherpora and Char-e-Shareef.
After the floods, tenders for the bridge’s reconstruction were issued, and in 2023, the project was assigned to the Jammu and Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation (JKPCC).
However, locals stated that the work progressed slowly and faced multiple interruptions .Despite repeated pleas to the authorities to expedite the construction to re-establish the vital connection between Pulwama and Budgam, the project saw little progress.
The sluggish pace of construction led authorities to transfer the project from JKPCC to the Roads and Buildings (R&B) division of Pulwama.
The R&B division resumed construction with urgency, aiming for swift completion. Qayoom Khan, a local resident, expressed his frustration over the renewed efforts, noting that construction halted again three months ago. He mentioned that authorities had assured the completion of the bridge by April 2024, but the deadline was missed, causing significant distress among the residents of Rahmoo and surrounding areas.
Khan added that cost variations were cited by R&B authorities as the reason for the work stoppage.
Javid Ahmad Dar, Executive Engineer of the R&B Division in Pulwama, informed Rising Kashmir that they are hopeful of resuming work on the bridge within a week.
He added that higher authorities held a meeting on the issue, assuring contractors that the cost variance would be addressed. Following this assurance, the contractors agreed to resume work.
“We are hopeful of resuming the work soon,” said Dar, expressing optimism about the project’s progress.