Dumka: Vehicular movement on the Baijra Ghat bridge over the Barakar river on NH-419 was stopped on Wednesday after a pillar on the Jamtara side reportedly sank by 1–1.5 inches, causing cracks in the structure. The bridge connects Jamtara and Dhanbad through Tundi. Its closure is expected to inconvenience commuters, traders, students and employees, who will now have to travel 20 km extra through alternative routes.Jamtara deputy commissioner Alok Kumar said movement of vehicles was halted as a safety measure after an executive engineer inspected the site and confirmed that the pillar had sank into the ground. “Further action will be taken after assessing damage and studying the structural safety of the bridge,” he said.Engineers from the road construction department were pressed on site while local police have been deployed. Locals claimed the river’s currents, along with unabated illegal sand mining around the pillars of the bridge, may have weakened foundation of the affected pillar and degraded the riverbed.Sukjora panchayat mukhiya Joseph Murmu and village head Ashok Singh demanded an inquiry into the alleged illegal sand mining and a technical assessment of the bridge. Locals said a pillar on the Dhanbad side of the bridge had sunk in 2021, raising concerns over its maintenance and structural safety. Half of the bridge falls under each of the two districts.Constructed in 2009 at a cost of Rs 5 crore, the bridge provides a direct road link between Dhanbad and Jamtara districts through Tundi.
