Bridge-building between communities in East

Dharma SRI ABEYRATNE

The newly opened Trincomalee-Batticaloa A15 road, which interconnects three districts of the Eastern Province - Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara- has greatly facilitated people mobility while rapidly improving basic social infrastructure, community and public services to a large number of people living in the province.

Under the A15 road construction project, five bridges were built over five tributaries of the Mahaweli Ganga.

These bridges were constructed at a cost of Rs 2,974 million and eliminate and this will eliminate the need to use the ferry transport system that existed for a long period.

The five bridges Verugal, Kayankerni, Ralkuli, Gangei, and Upparu and the Batticaloa-Trincomalee road were commissioned by President Mahinda Rajapaksa last year.

The Verugal bridge, which is 105 metres in length was constructed at a cost of Rs.250 million while Kayankerni bridge, which is 85 metres in length was constructed at a cost of Rs.202 million. Meanwhile, Ralkuli, Gangei and Upparu bridges with lengths of 175 meters, 245 metres and 315 metres had been constructed at a cost of Rs.571 million, Rs.956 million and Rs.995 million respectively.

The five bridges have been constructed under the "Neganahira Navodaya" project. These bridges play an important role in connecting the Batticaloa district with the Trincomalee district. Until the construction of new bridges, the people used ferry boats to cross the respective lagoons and rivers. Now these bridges will allow river crossings easier whereas ferries or long detours which took hours. This connectivity will bring several communities closer.

The road between Trincomalee and Batticaloa which joined the main national highway network is 138 km long taking about two and a half hours travel time.The Trincomalee - Batticaloa road development and rehabilitation project was designed to lower transportation costs and travel time by improving the condition of major highways. The project helps farmers in the area to transport their produce to the market on time and contribute to sustained economic development. Improved road network also benefits the tourism industry.