Rail link of Dhaka with northern and south-western districts was restored this afternoon, a day after its suspension as floodwater damaged a rail bridge in Kalihati upazila of Tangail.
“The rail link was restored around 3:50pm,” said Sayedur Rahman, assistant director of Bangladesh Railway.
The ongoing flood washed away soil beneath a rail bridge in Kalihati yesterday, snapping Dhaka’s rail link to the northern and southern Bangladesh, as well as to Kolkata, India.
A task force of around 300, including two units of fire service, worked relentlessly since yesterday and by this morning the majority work was done, Ramjan Ali said.
They are targeting to facilitate the passage of Rajshahi-bound inter-city Silk City that departs from Dhaka’s Kamalapur Railway Station at 3:00pm.
The onrush of floodwaters washed away around 30-foot stretch beneath the southern approach to the rail bridge No 98 on the Pungli, a tributary of the Jamuna, leaving only some rails and wooden sleepers and creating a 20-foot-deep crater.
The incident occurred sometime after Sundarban Express, a Dhaka-bound intercity train from Khulna, crossed the bridge around 5:00am yesterday, witnesses said.
Source: The Daily Star
