Chief minister Nitish Kumar inaugurates the bridge at Pilkhi village in Muzaffarpur on Tuesday. Picture by Gopi Raman

Muzaffarpur, Feb. 7: Chief minister Nitish Kumar today inaugurated a bridge over the Budhi Gandak at Pilkhi village in the district, much to the relief of the residents of Madhubani and Darbhanga.

The 255-m-long and 7-m-wide bridge, which falls under Morol block, would reduce the distance between Jainagar in Madhubani and the state capital by almost 60km.

Earlier, the residents had to travel about 178km from Madhubani to reach the state capital.

The chief minister said: “The trip (to Patna and back) would be hassle-free and there would not be any snarl. Built at Rs 21 crore, the bridge has come up within the one-year deadline that was set by the Bihar State Bridge Construction Corporation. This shows that the work culture in the state has improved significantly.”

Nitish also called upon the residents of the state to maintain communal harmony and peace and shun caste hatred.

“The state is marching fast on the path of development. The government just needs the support and goodwill of the people so that Bihar becomes one of the most powerful states in the country soon. No one can stop Bihar from becoming a developed state if the people extend their support to the government,” Nitish said.

The chief minister added that the state has now become a subject of various studies. “Everybody is talking about the janata darbar. Elected representatives from Nepal and foreign media teams have come to Bihar to see how the state is progressing. My aim is to deliver development based on justice and ameliorate the condition of poor people,” Nitish further said.

Road construction minister Nand Kishore Yadav and revenue and land reforms minister Ramai Ram reached the village in the afternoon to inaugurate the bridge.

“I have asked Nand Kishore to prepare a detailed project plan to facilitate road connectivity to all bridges that are being constructed on various rivers across the state,” he said.

Nand Kishore said all proposed bridges in the flood-prone areas of north Bihar would be constructed in the next four years.

Bihar State Bridge Construction Corporation managing director Bipin Kumar and road construction department secretary Pratyaya Amrit were also present on the occasion.