Anguished over years of Government apathy, a retired employee of the Veterinary Department has invested all his savings in completing a half-finished bridge over river Salandi in Keonjhar district.
Gangadhar Rout of Kanpur village in Hatadihi block has already spent around Rs 10 lakh on the bridge, which, once ready, would connect more than two panchayats. He plans to spend an additional Rs 2 lakh on its completion by the end of June or July.
The villagers have been demanding a bridge across the Salandi for over two decades, in absence of which several panchayats in Hatadihi block remain cut off from each other during monsoon.
They say they also find it difficult to reach their fields, which are on the other side of the river.
A decade ago, the Hatadihi block administration had started constructing the bridge but left it midway due to shortage of funds. Now, the villagers have no option but to use a rickety bamboo bridge during the monsoon.
With the district administration showing no interest in completing the bridge despite repeated requests, Rout decided to complete it himself and invested all his savings in re-launching the project in March last year. The construction is now in its last phase.
“When I saw the problems of the villagers, I decided to spend my entire provident fund to complete the bridge. My family backed my decision as two of my sons are not dependent on me,” Rout said.
He, however, rued that no one from the village offered him any help in his endeavour.
Though a little late in the day, the Keonjhar administration has also woken up to the villagers’ plight. District Collector Ashish Thakre said, “A team has already visited the site.
The administration will complete the bridge with its resources.”
Rout didn’t seem much pleased with this delayed offer of help from the state. “The district administration should, instead, construct an approach road to the bridge for movement of vehicles,” he said.