Sopore: The wooden remnants of the historic Bakshi Bridge, colloquially referred to as the 'Chankhan Bridge,' located in North Kashmir's Sopore, was auctioned by J&K administration for 65 lakh rupees on Thursday with the auctioned remnants of dewdor enduring legacy, showcasing the resilience of this timber despite the dynamic shifts occurring in Sopore's transportation landscape.
Assistant Executive Engineer R&B Division Sopore, Mubarak Ahmad, clarified to The Himalayan Post that the auction specifically involved the leftover wooden material, commonly known as Dewdor, after the bridge was fully destroyed in 2021.
"In order to ensure feasible public movement, we have already constructed another bridge at Chanapora Sopore as an alternative to Bakshi Bridge," Ahmad added.
The Bakshi Bridge, measuring over 260 meters in length, witnessed its first construction during the tenure of Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad, the 3rd Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir. However, in 1999, due to safety concerns, the bridge was declared hazardous for traffic and restricted to foot-walk movement.
The final blow came in 2021 when the bridge collapsed, submerging a significant portion into the Jhelum River.