Finally the district administration of Hazaribagh has issued order to close the Hazaribagh-Ramgarh section of NH-33 for heavy vehicles having a load of more than 10 metric tons. The order became effective from the midnight of 9-10 May. Since last night till Saturday evening due to this ban the NH-33 got jammed several times.
The arc bridge on Konar River, just outside Hazaribagh town, is now not in a position to bear the load of heavy vehicles as a crack has developed in one of its beams. The executive engineer of road division had written a letter to stop the movement of heavy vehicles through this bridge immediately and after several rounds of consultation the district administration has finally ordered it.
Since this order has not been publicised properly, so both the drivers-owners of heavy vehicles and the police team deputed there are facing difficulties. Due to ignorance the loaded vehicles are regularly coming from Ramgarh side and till the morning from Hazaribagh side too at the closure site. Hot exchanges between police team and vehicle owners-drivers are taking place regularly at the site.
No one wants to go back and to take a long route so by hook or crook everyone is trying to pass this few meter distance so that their time and fuel can be saved. Some drivers said that the heavy vehicles of powerful and influential politicians and businessmen of Hazaribagh-Ramgarh were allowed to pass through that bridge so we should also be allowed to pass the bridge.
In the noon when The Pioneer visited the site two constables on each side of the bridge were on duty. They said that our in-charge has gone to PS for some work. At that time there was a long queue on Ramgarh side while vehicles were passing through Hazaribagh side and some heavy vehicles too passed with light vehicles forcibly ignoring the regular warnings of constables who were not in a position to do more than to warn and note the number of the vehicles.