, Dec. 23 -- A project envisioned as a vital connectivity link for Narail has instead come to epitomise years of delay, mounting costs and unmet promises.

Construction of the Barui Para Bridge over the Nabaganga River in Kalia upazila has dragged on for nearly eight years, far exceeding its original one-and-a-half-year deadline.

With only partial progress achieved, local residents and commuters continue to endure daily hardship, growing increasingly frustrated as deadline after deadline slips by.

The prolonged delay has also come at a heavy financial cost. Originally approved at Tk 65 crore, the project's budget has ballooned to around Tk 136 crore-almost two and a half times higher-largely due to design complications and repeated exte...