Gouranga Bridge

Gouranga Bridge is a 588 m (1,929 ft) long Road bridge that crosses the Bhagirathi River in between Nabadwip and Krishnanagar, Nadia in West Bengal.^[2] It is the part of State highway 8.^[3]

Gouranga Bridge গৌরাঙ্গ সেতু
Gouranga Bridge in 2020
Coordinates	23.385928°N 88.366555°E / 23.385928; 88.366555
Carries	Motor vehicles, pedestrians and bicycles
Crosses	Bhagirathi River
Locale	Nabadwip, Nadia, West Bengal, India
Official name	Gouranga Setu
Named for	Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
Owner	PWD
Maintained by	PWD Burdwan Division-I (till 2016) PWD Nadia Division-I (since 2016)
Characteristics
Design	Bored piling method
Material	Concrete
Total length	558 m (1,831 ft)
History
Constructed by	Gammon India Limited
Construction start	1972
Construction end	January 1983
Opened	January 16, 1983; 42 years ago (1983-01-16)
Statistics
Daily traffic	Goods and passenger cars
Toll	Yes[1]
Location
Interactive map of Gouranga Bridge

History

In 1972, the then Minister of Public Works, Bhola Sen, laid the foundation stone of the Gouranga Bridge to connect Nabadwip and Krishnanagar. Gammon India Limited took the responsibility to construct the bridge.^[4] On 16 January 1983, Minister of Public Works of Left Front Government, Jatin Chakraborty inaugurated the bridge. The bridge is built in the Class-A stage in terms of carrying load according to the importance and demand of the connecting cities.^[3]

Design and Construction

Gouranga Bridge is built of pre‑stressed concrete girders supported on bored‐pile piers designed to resist Bhagirathi’s strong monsoon currents. Its six equal spans, each about 93 m long are carried on piers sunk 15–20 m below the riverbed for scour protection. Toll collection began in 1983 and continues under PWD Nadia Division‑I, with rates reviewed biennially.

Routine inspections in 2016 revealed scour damage at two piers, prompting emergency embankment repairs; in 2021, dislocated expansion joints led to a temporary ban on heavy vehicles until replacement works were completed.^[5] Cracks were spotted in the concrete deck, prompting police and residents to halt all heavy‑vehicle traffic and prevent a potential collapse.^[6] The Gouranga Bridge experienced a similar crack incident in October 2024 on the eve of Durga Puja, when an expansion joint dislocation forced authorities to halt all traffic and initiate emergency repairs.^[7]