The state government and the BJP on Wednesday blamed each other for "playing politics" over the Gandhi Setu issue even as commuters struggle everyday to cross the Ganga.

The matter of Gandhi Setu came up in the Assembly through a call-attention notice by a BJP MLA on Wednesday. "Crossing the Gandhi Setu has become like winning a war. But the state government has become insensitive. Instead of finding a solution to the problem, they are more interested in playing politics and shifting the blame on the Centre," said Leader of Opposition Nand Kishore Yadav.

Road construction minister Rajiv Ranjan alias Lallan Singh stood up to oppose Nand Kishore's statement pointing out that he (Nand Kishore) himself headed the ministry for a long time and was aware of the difficulties.

"It was during the tenure of Nand Kishore as minister of road construction in 2012 a meeting with the then Union surface transport minister, C.P. Joshi, was held and it was agreed that the Centre would give an NoC for construction of a parallel bridge and the state government would maintain the Gandhi Setu for six years. Till date, the NoC has not been given by the Centre. As per government gazette, the bridge is under National Highways Authority of India. The consultant for rehabilitation of the bridge has submitted its report. But the Centre has not taken any step," Rajiv Ranjan said.

The minister, however, promised to take action against construction agencies engaged in repair of the bridge. "Traffic control is done by the transport department. However, we have held a meeting recently and it was pointed out that traffic jams take place due to overtaking in patches where one flank is closed. We have decided to put 500 temporary dividers in such patches so overtaking cannot take place," he asserted. The minister's statement evoked angry retorts from BJP leaders who alleged that the minister was misleading the House.

Nand Kishore, speaking to reporters later, said the Gandhi Setu, opened in 1982, needed repair in less than 10 years in 1991. "The Congress government did not give a single paisa for repair. It was the government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee that agreed to extend expenses for repairs in 2001. Since then, experts have submitted their reports for rehabilitation of the bridge. Everybody agrees that there is nothing wrong with the pillars. The entire superstructure has to be changed. For changing the superstructure of the bridge, it has to be closed. In 2010, as minister I sent a proposal of Rs 167 crore for changing the superstructure which was rejected by the then Congress government at the Centre," he said.

Nand Kishore added that the state government had gone slow on alternative bridges proposed over the Ganga. "The state government talked about building a Pipa bridge over the Ganga parallel to Gandhi Setu. But they remained silent over the issue. The state government has not acquired land for the elevated roads for Digha-Sonepur rail-cum-road bridge," he said.