In Giridih, a bridge may swing fortunes

It was supposed to link the hill to the district but the road is not in use. Iron rods, bricks, sand lie strewn around and a sign on a motor...

It was supposed to link the hill to the district but the road is not in use. Iron rods, bricks, sand lie strewn around and a sign on a motor pump says a 9×12 ft bridge was under construction. Ratan Lal Mandal, a JMM worker, was given a Rs 1.5 crore contract by the government to construct this bridge in 2002. But it took Mandal more than a year — on November 15, 2003 — to start the work.

‘‘If construction work is carried out on a daily basis, it would give us job and money every day and the bridge would be complete within a month’’, says one of the workers, Chumnu Hansda.

In the absence of this bridge, it’s a bumpy ride for the Jain pilgrims who visit Sammed Shikharji carrying the ‘footprints’ of Mahavir on Parasnath hill. And the traffic on this road was paralysed for two days last week when it rained.

But why hasn’t Mandal constructed the bridge in the past three years?

‘‘I am helpless. Ask the government authorities’’, he says. ‘‘I was not paid as per the contract. Every time we go to the office, clerks and officials demand speed money.’’ But Ratnakar Minz, a section officer the State Road Department in Giridih alleges that Mandal is lying. ‘‘Instead of using the money to execute the job order, he had diverted it elsewhere’’, says Minz.

In Giridih, where the polls are slated for February 3, this incomplete bridge has left 500-odd residents of this village fuming against the ruling BJP. ‘‘Last time we had opted for kamal (BJP’s lotus symbol). This time, we will support teer dhanush (JMM’s symbol),’’ says Hansda of Khapaibera.

Chandra Mohan Prasad — the state Minister for Rural Development and BJP candidate who had won the Giridih seat by less than a 1,000 votes in 2000 — may win them back. But the incomplete bridge at Khapaibera is not an isolated instance of the slow pace of implementation of development projects here.

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Near Khapaibera lies Dhurki village where work on a 8×10 feet culvert was started in 2003. It is still under construction. It’s the same case for the Rs 50 lakh water harvesting project at Lalbera village in Dumri. This project started in 2001.

‘‘As the state lacked a body to act as a watchdog, the problem has remained unaddressed,’’ says Diwakar Singh, a teacher at Giridih. ‘‘But this was not in the agenda of the BJP government’’, adds Singh.

In Dumri, state Minister for Power and RJD candidate Lalchand Mahato has tried to provide power to almost every corner of his village. This has displeased the Sahus — a backward caste. ‘‘Mana lenge (we will win them over)’’, says Mahato.

Meanwhile, the All Jharkhand Students’ Union — led by Minister for Road Sudesh Mahato — has given a ticket to former CM Babulal Marandi’s son, Sanatan Marandi in Gandey. The BJP has put up former JMM MP Raj Kishore Mahato who is being challenged by the junior Marandi. The senior Marandi — who has campaigned for Minister for Industry Ravindra Rai in Raj Dhanwar— has not done so for Raj Kishore yet.