Infrastructure collapse on Khulna Birshrestha Ruhul Amin Road leaves thousands stranded as repair funding stalls

The Bir Shrestha Ruhul Amin Road in the Rupsha Upazila of Khulna has deteriorated into a hazardous path, characterized by deep craters, exposed soil, and layers of thick mud that have rendered it nearly impassable for vehicles. The road, which provides access to the burial complex of national heroes Bir Shrestha Ruhul Amin and Bir Bikrom Mohibullah, has been neglected for years, causing severe distress to thousands of daily commuters.

Spanning approximately seven kilometers, the road runs from the eastern bank of the Rupsha Ferry Ghat through Char Rupsha and Bagmara, ending at Jabusa Bazar. While three kilometers remain unpaved, the critical four-kilometer section stretching from the Orion Power Plant to the ferry ghat under the Rupsha Bridge is severely damaged. This stretch has not undergone significant maintenance since minor repairs were conducted in 2017.

Although the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) classifies this as a “Rural Road-A” category route, it serves as a vital industrial artery. The area now hosts at least 17 frozen shrimp processing plants, numerous ice factories, fish depots, and critical security installations, including a Coast Guard camp and a police station. More than 5,000 people, including 3,000 industrial workers, rely on the route daily.

The rapid degradation is largely attributed to the constant movement of heavy vehicles, including 10-wheeled trucks transporting fertilizer, sand, stone, and coal. Local residents report that the road surface has worn away entirely, leaving deep trenches that often force passengers to disembark from auto-rickshaws and vans to traverse the mud on foot.

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According to LGED officials, the road’s current condition cannot be remedied by standard patchwork. Under current LGED policies, roads are designed for a maximum load of 20 tons; however, the heavy industrial traffic on this route frequently reaches 50 tons. This discrepancy makes the road unsuitable for conventional repair funding.

Efforts to secure funding have so far failed. In June, a proposal for a 95 million taka project to renovate four kilometers of the road was submitted to authorities in Dhaka but was subsequently rejected. Rupsha Upazila Engineer Md. Nazmul Huda explained that a sustainable reconstruction would cost approximately 24 million taka per kilometer, whereas the current LGED project limit is capped at 9 million taka per kilometer. Officials maintain that without a special allocation of funds, a permanent solution for the road remains unattainable.