The Chak-Nizam Bridge

Abstract

The bridge over the Sutlej (see the preceding article) had been opened at the end of April inauspiciously; the ceremonies were delayed and protracted by various failures, the heat was troublesome, a sandstorm blew up, and the Lahore contingent, exhausted, did not get home until three in the morning. Accordingly, official Lahore was not eager to attend the opening of the bridge at Chak Nizam, the Victoria Bridge, especially since the region is one of the hottest in India. Such is the background of Kipling’s account, which neglects technical details and concentrates on a narrative of the preliminaries to and the aftermath of the opening ceremonies as much more to the point for his Lahore audience.