Protesting the bad condition of a 2-km stretch of road, villagers blocked the National Highway-34 for hours near Mirjadighi More under Itahar police station in North Dinajpur district this morning. The local people also planted paddy in the middle of the muddy road as a mark of protest.
The blockade led to a huge traffic congestion, while police reached the spot after being informed, but failed to convince the villagers to lift their protest. Later, the blockade was withdrawn after the member of the North Dinajpur Zilla Parishad of the area, Musaraf Hossain, assured the villagers that their concerns would be looked into.
Agitating villagers like Gopal Sarkar, Mojibur Rahaman and Dipak Das said that a 2-km-long stretch of the road from NH-34 at Mirjadighi More in Marnai Gram Panchayat in Itahar crosses villages like Chengsura, Rangpur, Chita Pukur Nayapara and Souria in Itahar. This road then enters Hsarirampur in South Dinajpur district.
There are several craters on the mud-filled road, while the rains have made matters worse. Motorcycles, rickshaws and even bicycles are not able to cross the road as the mud is almost knee-deep. Even those who fall ill in the villagers have to be taken to the health centre on someone’s shoulders as ambulances too cannot ply on the road.” According to them, the condition has remained the same for the last few years.
“We informed the Itahar BDO and members of the local GP of the matter, but to no avail. If the road is not built soon, we will be forced to start a movement against it,” a local said. The ZP member, Mr Hossain, said, “This road was damaged two years ago by floods. Making it a concrete one is the need of the hour. This road will be restored soon after holding consultations with the Itahar MLA Mr Amal Acharjee and members of the North Dinajpur ZP.”