Hardinge Bridge is a steel railway

truss bridge A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements, typically straight, may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...

over the

Padma River The Padma () is a major river in Bangladesh. It is the eastern and main distributary of the Ganges, flowing generally southeast for to its confluence with the Meghna River, near the Bay of Bengal. The city of Rajshahi is situated on the banks ...

located at Ishwardi,

Pabna Pabna () is a city of Pabna District, Bangladesh and the administrative capital of the eponymous Pabna District. It is on the north bank of the Padma River and has a population of about . Etymology * According to the historian Radharaman Saha ...

and Bheramara,

Kushtia Kushtia () is a city located on the banks of the Gorai River in Bangladesh. It serves as the headquarters of Kushtia District and is considered the cultural capital of Bangladesh. The city is known for its Tiler Khaja (sesame sweets), kulf ...

in Bangladesh. It is named after Lord Hardinge, who was the

Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

of India from 1910 to 1916. The bridge is long.

Construction

Construction of the through truss bridge began in 1910, though it was proposed at least 20 years earlier. It was constructed by Braithwaite and Kirk Company based on design of Sir Alexander Meadows Rendel. It was completed in 1912, and trains started moving on it in 1915. Lord Hardinge officially opened the bridge on 4 March of that year.

Brief history

The construction of a railway bridge over the Padma was proposed in 1889 by the Eastern Bengal Railway for easier communication between

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

and the then Eastern Bengal and

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

. In 1902, Sir FJE Spring prepared a report on the bridge. A technical committee reported that a bridge could be constructed at Sara crossing the lower

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 which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary rive ...

between the Paksey and Bheramara Upazila stations on the broad gauge railway from

Khulna Khulna (, ) is the third-largest city in Bangladesh, after Dhaka and Chittagong. It is the administrative centre of the Khulna District and the Khulna Division. It is the divisional centre of 10 districts of the division. Khulna is also the seco ...

to Parbatipur Upazila. The construction of the bridge started in 1910 and finished two years later. The bridge comprises 15 steel trusses. The main girders are modified "Petit" type. The most difficult task of the operation was to prevent bank erosion and to make the river flow permanently under the bridge. For this, two guide banks of the "Bell- bund" type, named after J. R. Bell were built on either side, each extending upstream and downstream from the bridge. The ends of the river banks were curved inward and heavily pitched with stone. Hardinge Bridge was severely damaged during the

Liberation War of Bangladesh The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...

of 1971. On 13 December 1971, the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...

bombed the 4th guarder from the Paksey side. As the

Pakistani army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

was on retreat towards

Jessore Jessore (, ), officially Jashore, is a city of Jessore District in Khulna Division. It lies in southwestern Bangladesh. It is home to the first flight training school of the Bangladeshi Air Force, established in 1971. Jessore city consists of 9 wa ...

(their last stronghold), Hardinge Bridge was strategically very important. The allied force damaged the bridge. The Japanese government helped to reconstruct the bridge, and the bridge was reopened to public passage on 12 October 1972. It is the second longest railway bridge in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. Another bridge named Lalon Shah Bridge for road transport beside the Hardinge Bridge has recently been constructed.

Gallery

Hardinge Bridge 12.jpg Image:Hardinge Bridge Bangladesh (4).JPG Image:Hardinge Bridge Bangladesh (5).JPG Image:Hardinge Bridge Bangladesh (12).JPG Image:Hardinge Bridge Bangladesh (14).JPG File:Hardinge Bridge, Pabna.jpg Image:Hardinge Bridge.jpg

References

External links

Hardinge Bridge
in Banglapedia {{Bangladesh topics Railway bridges in Bangladesh Railway bridges in Kushtia District Tourist attractions in Kushtia District Bridges completed in 1912 Steel bridges in Bangladesh Truss bridges Bridges over the Ganges 1915 establishments in India