Vikramshila Setu is a bridge across the

Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...

, near

Bhagalpur Bhagalpur is a city in the Indian state of Bihar, situated on the southern banks of the river Ganges. It is the 2nd largest city of Bihar by population and also the headquarters of Bhagalpur district and Bhagalpur division. Known as the Si ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

named after the ancient

Mahavihara Mahavihara () is the Sanskrit and Pali term for a great vihara (centre of learning or Buddhist monastery) and is used to describe a monastic complex of viharas. Mahaviharas of India A range of monasteries grew up in ancient Magadha (modern Bihar ...

Vikramashila Vikramashila (Sanskrit: विक्रमशिला, IAST: , Bengali:- বিক্রমশিলা, Romanisation:- Bikrômôśilā ) was one of the three most important Buddhist monasteries in India during the Pala Empire, along wit ...

which was established by King Dharmapala (783 to 820 A.D.) . Vikramshila Setu is 6th longest bridge over water in India. The 4.7 km long two lane bridge serves as a link between NH 33 and NH 31 running on the opposite sides of the

. It runs from Barari Ghat on the

side on the south bank of the

to Naugachia on the north bank. It also connects Bhagalpur to

Purnia Purnia ()(also romanized as Purnea) is a city that serves as the administrative headquarters of both Purnia district and Purnia division in the Indian state of Bihar. Total geographical area of Purnia Urban Agglomeration is which is nex ...

and

Katihar Katihar is a city situated in the eastern part of the state of Bihar in India. It is the regional headquarter of Katihar district. It is one of the important cities of Bihar. Also it's a main route of Delhi - Guwahati railway line. History K ...

. This has reduced considerably the road travel between

and places across the Ganges. However, there is intense traffic congestion on the bridge due to increased traffic and there is now a demand to construct another bridge parallel to it. On 21 September 2020 Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of another 4 lane road bridge of 4.445 km length over Ganga river parallel to Vikramshila Setu at cost of 1110.23 crore. In June 2018, another 24 km-long Vikramshila - Kataria rail-cum-road bridge between Vikramshila railway station (near Pirpainty south of Ganga) and Kataria railway station (near Naugachia railway station) north of the Ganga, with an expenditure of 4,379.01 crore was approved.

References

Transport in Bhagalpur Bridges over the Ganges Tourist attractions in Bihar Bridges in Bihar Road bridges in India Toll bridges in India Bridges completed in 2001 2001 establishments in Bihar {{India-bridge-struct-stub

See also

References