Doda , September 30,2026-The Roads and Buildings (R&B) Department has begun work on the Mandol bridge over the Chenab river in Doda, a project that will give all-weather connectivity to nearly 80,000 people in Siraj and adjoining areas. The bridge is being built with assistance from NABARD.
The 200-foot-long span will rise about 100 feet above the river and link Mandol in Siraj with Assar on NH-244. It will serve residents of the Kashtigarh, Bhagwah and Assar blocks of Doda, as well as Rajgarh in Ramban district. Further technical details of the structure were not immediately available.
Work on the project began in 2025 and is slated to be completed within this financial year. Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE) Danesh Bhushan said forest clearance and other bottlenecks that had held up the project have now been resolved, and construction is moving fast.
Clearances of this kind often slow infrastructure projects in hill districts, where work must be coordinated with forest and land regulations. With those hurdles behind it, the department is now focused on keeping construction on schedule.
The sanctioned cost of the bridge is ₹24.69 crore, while the allotted cost is ₹22.83 crore, a difference of about ₹1.86 crore. The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) supports rural infrastructure across the country, and its assistance is funding the project.
For residents, one of the biggest gains will be time. Travel to the Doda-Batote highway is expected to fall by about two hours once the bridge is ready. In a mountainous region where journeys are already long and difficult, such a saving could change how families plan everything from medical visits to work and trade.
The Chenab valley is known for its steep banks and fast-flowing water, which make river crossings a major engineering challenge. Communities on either side often depend on long detours or on routes that become unreliable in bad weather. A permanent, high-level bridge is meant to remove that uncertainty and keep people connected in every season.
Access to hospitals, schools, markets and government offices depends heavily on road links in hilly districts like Doda. A dependable connection between Siraj and NH-244 could also help farmers and local traders reach wider markets more easily, and could improve response times during emergencies.
The bridge is also expected to bring together people living across two districts. By linking Mandol with Assar, it will connect areas of Doda with Rajgarh in Ramban, giving residents on both sides a shared route to the highway.
Projects of this kind are closely followed by local communities, who often see a bridge as the difference between isolation and access. Because the work is due to finish this financial year, which ends on March 31, 2027, construction will need to continue through the winter months, when weather in Doda can slow progress.
Residents of Siraj and nearby areas will now be watching the work closely, hoping it is finished within the stated timeline. If completed as planned, the Mandol bridge will cut travel time sharply, connect tens of thousands of people and give the region a dependable crossing over the Chenab.
