No pillars, how Howrah Bridge works?

credit: third party image reference
Rabindra Setu, popularly known as Howrah Bridge links the cities of Howrah and Kolkata.
Whenever we look at the Howrah Bridge, a long and heavy bridge, the only question struck on our mind is that how Howrah Bridge works without pillars and support in the centre. What holds it up?
credit: third party image reference
Howrah Bridge is a 705-metre long cantilever bridge. A cantilever is a structure that juts out way beyond its base. The branch of a tree is a natural cantilever; a beam of metal jutting out from a wall to support a balcony is a cantilever; the diving board of a swimming pool may be a cantilever.
credit: third party image reference
In all these examples, the support exists only at one end. In a cantilever bridge, the cantilever juts out over the river from a supporting structure known as a pier. A similar cantilever juts out from a supporting structure on the opposite side of the river.
credit: third party image reference
The two arms meet to form the span of the bridge. The piers at either end of the bridge support the load that a cantilever bridge has to carry, so there is no need for a support in the center.
credit: third party image reference

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